Bhubaneswar, Feb. 1: Six policemen were killed and seven injured when a vehicle carrying the cops was blown up allegedly in a landmine blast on Sunki hill in the Maoist-hit Koraput district this evening.

Police suspect the involvement of Maoists in the attack.

The cops said the incident took place when the bus of Odisha police with 13 constables was on its way to Bhubaneswar. The bus was blown to pieces. The impact of the blast was so severe that the bus fell 70 feet from the hill. The police said the men were rushed to the nearest government hospital at Sunki.

Following the incident, senior police officers from Koraput and Jeypore rushed to the spot and sealed off the area.

The cops have started a combing operation in the area. The cops said the policemen were coming to Bhubaneswar for a training programme when the blast took place.

Body found

The police today recovered the decomposed body of a woman stashed in an air bag from the banks of the Kuakhai river in Mancheswar police limits.

The woman, who is yet to be identified, was in her late twenties.

Deputy commissioner of police Satyabrata Bhoi said they were trying to identify the deceased.

"We are checking all missing persons' reports lodged with all police stations in the city. Prima facie, it appears that the woman was killed eight to 10 days ago. We are waiting for the autopsy report to ascertain the cause of death," he said.