5 Maoists killed in encounter in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar

The encounter lasted four hours, police said, adding that five bodies have been recovered from the site, along with weapons such as an INSAS rifle and a SLR rifle. Operations are still ongoing, said sources.

According to the police, the two jawans — Heerman Yadav, a constable from District Reserve Guards Kanker and Khileshwar Gawde, a district constable from another specialised anti-Maoist unit, the Bastar Fighters — suffered bullet wounds but are stated to be stable.

Larger than the state of Goa, Abujhmad comprises swathes of largely un-surveyed, most of which falls in Narayanpur district, although parts of it extend to Bijapur, Dantewada and Kanker districts and even all the way to neighbouring Maharashtra.

Until last year, the area was seen as a haven for Maoists due to its dense forest cover and little to no presence of government officials. However, this year has seen over 100 Maoists being gunned down in the area and its periphery under the state’s ‘Maad Bachao’ (Save Maad) anti-insurgency campaign.

Saturday’s encounter takes the total number of Maoists killed in the Bastar region this year to 197. This number, which includes 69 women, is the highest number of Maoist casualties since the state of Chhattisgarh was founded in 2000.

Meanwhile, 17 security personnel and 60 civilians have been killed in anti-Maoist operations — the highest civilian deaths since 2018 – during the same period. Another 782 Naxals have been arrested and 783 more have surrendered before authorities.