Chhattisgarh: Nine Maoists killed in encounter in Dantewada, assortment of weapons recovered

Raipur: In a major blow to the proscribed CPI (Maoist), a joint team of security forces have gunned down as many as nine Maoists in an ongoing encounter near the inter-state borders of Dantewada-Bijapur districts on Tuesday, September 03.

The operation was launched after the police received credible intel about the presence of Maoist cadres of the West Bastar Division of the banned group, after which a joint team comprising of personnel from Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and District Reserve Guard (DRG), a specialised counter-insurgency unit of the state police was dispatched towards the location.

An exchange of fire broke out between the Maoists and the joint team when the latter arrived at Lohagaon Pidiya area near the Dantewada-Bijapur borders, leading to heavy causalities on the Maoists side.

Nine bodies in Maoist uniforms have so far been recovered from the spot while an assortment of weapons including automatic rifles have also been seized by the joint team. Further search operation in the vicinity is still underway. The development has been confirmed by the officials of the police.

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“Large numbers of Self Loading Rifles (SLR), .303 rifles and .315 rifles were recovered from the Naxal (Maoists). All security personnel who were part of the offensive are reported to be safe, a detailed report on the operation will be released upon its completion,” informed Superintendent of Police (SP), Dantewada, Gaurav Rai.

Notably, security forces in a similar operation had killed three women Maoists following an exchange of fire in the forests of Abujhmaad near Narayanpur border on August 29. Similar recovery of weapons was also made from the site of the gunfight.

Those killed in the encounter were later identified as members of the battalion no 05 of the People’s Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA), armed unit of the CPI (Maoist).

With the encounter on Tuesday, the total toll of Maoists killed in separate operations in the state in the current year has surpassed the figure of 190, indicating a major counter insurgency drive being carried out by the forces in hinterlands of violence-ridden Bastar.