About 50 armed naxalites reached the site of the tower situated on Aurangabad-Medininagar route in the district, stuffed explosives before blowing it up, Deputy Superintendent of Police Brajmohan Paswan, said in Medininagar.

The blast left a big crater on the spot, about 200 km from Ranchi, he added.

The CPI (Maoist) is observing a two-day shut down in Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal [Images], Bihar and Chhattisgarh against the arrest of two of its senior members.

Maoists blow up tracks in Latehar

Meanwhile, the Maoists on Monday also blew up a stretch of railway track in Latehar as they began their 48-hour bandh in five states, including Jharkhand.

About 20 left-wing ultras blasted the tracks between Kumundi and Hehegarha railway stations, about 150 km from Ranchi, according to Latehar Railway station master P N Tiwari.

The blast occurred on the down line disrupting the Barwadih-Barkakana route, he said.