Three CRPF personnel and a civilian were killed after their car rammed into a stationary truck on a highway in Chhattisgarh’s Dhamtari district on Saturday (February 14, 2026), police said.
Commandos from the Central Reserve Police Force’s elite CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action) unit were involved in the accident that occurred around 8 a.m. near Khapri village on the Dhamtari bypass on Jagdalpur-Raipur National Highway, Superintendent of Police Suraj Singh Parihar said.
He said that the deceased personnel belonged to the 201st battalion of the CoBRA.
Four CoBRA personnel, along with the civilian driver, were heading to Raipur from Jagdalpur, the headquarters of Bastar district, to travel to their native places on leave, the official said.
He said that the car rammed into a stationary truck, and the impact was severe, killing one jawan and the driver on the spot, while two other personnel succumbed to injuries while being taken to a hospital.
Prima facie, it appears that the driver may have dozed off at the wheel, causing the speeding vehicle to crash into the truck parked on the roadside, Parihar said.
The deceased included CRPF personnel Saurabh Tomar, Mukesh Kumar and Rajkumar God, and the driver, Heeralal Nagar, he said, adding that another CoBRA commando, Abhiman Rai (28), was injured and has been referred to Raipur for further treatment.
The CRPF and its elite unit are extensively deployed in the Bastar region, comprising seven districts, for anti-Maoist operations.
Published – February 14, 2026 01:25 pm IST
