A sub-inspector had to fire from his service revolver in self-defence after being attacked by two thieves armed with a crowbar and knives in the early hours of Tuesday in Maharashtra's Thane district, police said. PSI Shantaram Mahale of Kasara police station was on patrol duty on the Mumbai-Nashik Highway and gave chase in a jeep after he was alerted about three thieves escaping in a van, said an official.

"The thieves had broken into a house in Kalambe area of Shahapur at around 1:30am. But they fled after neighbours woke up and raised an alarm. Mahale chased them in a jeep and also alerted Shirol police ahead to block their van," he said. The Shirol police set up a road blockade and managed to stop the van, while Mahale's jeep blocked the vehicle from the rear, he added.