At least�18 policemen were feared killed in an ongoing encounter between the Jharkhand police and members of the banned Naxalite outfit Maoist�Communist Centre (MCC) in Singhbhum district in Jharkhand.

Jharkhand DGP R R Prasad told rediff.com that the�encounter began on Friday morning in the forest near Manoharpur, but did not comment on the casualties.

However, sources in the district police told rediff.com that at�least�18 policemen died in the encounter and a senior police official is critically injured.

Sources said that the cops, along with Orissa police personnel, were returning after a joint operation against the MCC when one of their vehicles hit a�landmine.

More reports from Jharkhand

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