(MENAFN- Saudi Press Agency) Indian police killed 12 Maoist insurgents on Tuesday in a shootout with a group suspected of planning to extort money from mining contractors in the east of the country, a spokesman said, according to Reuters.

Police, acting on a tip-off, tightened up security on the route to the mines. When the group approached a checkpoint in vehicles, the police got out and opened fire.

'We have recovered the bodies of 12 rebels from the spot. This is a big achievement for us,' police spokesman S.N. Pradhan said by telephone from Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand state.