Ranchi, April 16: Maoist guerrillas blew up a four-metre-long rail track in Giridih district of Jharkhand on early Wednesday, while enforcing a 24-hour shutdown, the police said.

About 20 rebels of the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) blasted the rail track between Hazaribagh Road and Parasnath railway stations at around 2 a.m.

The blast affected rail traffic in the Grand Chord section of Jharkhand, the main line that connects eastern and northern India. Eight trains have been cancelled while seven have been diverted, railway officials said.

Maoists have called for a 24-hour shutdown to protest the killing of eight rebels by security forces in Garwah district earlier this month.

Maoist rebels are active in 18 of the 24 districts of the state. Since Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar in 2000, 614 civilians and 290 security personnel have been killed in the state in Maoist related violence.

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