Dantewada | A personnel of the Central reserve Police Force (CRPF) was on Tuesday injured when an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) planted by Naxalites went off in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district, police said.

The incident took place near a camp of the paramilitary force under Jagargunda police station limits bordering Dantewada district when a team of security personnel was out on an `area domination and search' operation, Dantewada Additional Superintendent of Police R K Barman said.

As the team was returning, head-constable M N Shukla, belonging to the CRPF's 231st battalion, inadvertently stepped on an pressure-activated IED, triggering the blast.

He was administered preliminary treatment and airlifted to Raipur, the police official said.

The Maoists often plant IEDs along the roads and dirt tracks in forested areas to target security personnel patrolling in interior pockets of the Bastar region.

The region comprises seven districts including Dantewada and Sukma.

On February 4, two security personnel were injured in an IED blast in Bijapur district.

Earlier on January 17, two personnel of the Border Security Force (BSF) were injured when Naxalites triggered an IED blast in Narayanpur district.

On January 16, two commandos of CoBRA, a special CRPF unit, were injured when a pressure IED went off in Bijapur. On January 12, a 10-year-old girl was injured in Sukma district, and two policemen sustained injuries in Bijapur district in similar incidents.

On January 10, a villager was killed and three others were injured in two separate IED blasts in Orchha area of Narayanpur district.