PATNA: Maoist guerrillas killed six policemen in a gunfight in India`s eastern state of Bihar, police said on Monday, in the latest of a series of rebel attacks on security forces.

More than 150 Maoists battled with the police, who were on patrol in forests about 150 kilometres (100 miles) from the state capital Patna late on Sunday, senior police officer P.K. Thakur told AFP.

Bihar is one of several states across east and central India where Maoist rebel groups exert a bloody sway.

Authorities in New Delhi launched an offensive last year to tackle the worsening insurgency, but since then the Maoists have hit back with repeated strikes against police and paramilitary forces.

On Sunday five policemen were killed by Maoists in the state of Chhattisgarh.

The rebels have fought for decades against state and central government rule, drawing support from tribal groups and landless farmers left behind by the country`s economic expansion.

BDST: 1100 HRS, August 30, 2010