Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday condemned the killing of 24 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in Chhattisgarh by Maoists and expressed pain at the great loss.
Modi termed the act as "cowardly and deplorable" and said that the sacrifice of the personnel will not go in vain.
"We are proud of the valour of our CRPF personnel. The sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain," the prime minister tweeted.
Reaching out to the bereaved families of the personnel, Modi wrote: "Condolences to their families. May those injured in (the) attack recover at the earliest."
Home Minister Rajnath Singh also took to Twitter and said he was "extremely pained" by the killings.
"Extremely pained to know about the killings of CRPF personnel in Sukma (district). My tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families," Singh tweeted.
Singh said he had spoken to state Home Minister Hansraj Ahir, who "will take stock of the situation".
Modi also said the government was monitoring the situation in Chhattisgarh closely.
The attack took place at Sukma district at around 12.25 PM between the Burkapal-Chintagufa area of the worst Maoist-affected district in south Bastar area of the state.
The jawans are from the 74th battalion of the CRPF. Earlier this year, the Nxals killed 12 CRPF personnel in the region.