Bhubaneswar: Sushant Kumar Khuntia, a CRPF jawan, was killed in Maoist attack in West Singhbhum district of neighbouring Jharkhand today.

Khuntia was a resident of Ward no.4 of Anandapur municipality in Odisha’s Keonjhar district, sources said.

Khuntia and another jawan Munna Yadav sustained bullet injuries when the Maoists attacked a CRPF team during a search operation in Hatiburu forests in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand today morning.

The two injured jawans were airlifted to a hospital in Ranchi. Khuntia succumbed to his injuries while being treated at the hospital. Yadav is now battling for his life, sources added.

Khuntia had been working as a CRPF jawan since 2012. His father had died last year.

Khuntia’s elder brother had been killed while working in CRPF a few years ago. One of his brothers also died in cancer, sources said.

Khuntia got married on June 2 this year. His wife works as an ANM worker in Telkoi area of Keonjhar.

Khuntia’s mother is now undergoing treatment for some illness at a hospital in the Odisha capital here.