Chhattisgarh: Six women among nine Maoists killed, say police

At 10.30 am on Tuesday, an encounter broke out in Loha village, in the forests of Purangel and Andri, about 50 km from Dantewada district headquarters. “The exchange of fire took place seven to eight times. After the firing ended, search operations were carried out and the bodies of nine Naxals in PLGA uniform were found,” said Superintendent of Police for Dantewada district, Gaurav Rai.

Officials said none of the security personnel were injured, and search operations were still on.

“An SLR, .303 rifle, BGL launchers, 315 bore rifle, 12 bore rifle and explosives were recovered from the spot,” said Inspector General of Police for Bastar Range, Sundarraj P.

“The West Bastar divisional committee along the Dantewada-Bijapur inter-district border areas is a stronghold of the CPI(Maoist). A major setback for Maoists in this area would certainly provide a breakthrough for security forces… It is time for the Naxal cadres to shun violence and join the social mainstream,” he said.

Sources said the area where the encounter took place has seen Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blasts in the past, in which villagers and security personnel have been killed.

It is about 15 km from Mandimarka forest, where, on July 17 this year, two Special Task Force (STF) personnel were killed and four injured in an IED blast. The Mandimarka forest falls on the tri-junction of Bijapur, Sukma and Dantewada districts in Bastar region.

With Tuesday’s encounter, a total of 153 Maoists have been killed this year. Fifteen security personnel and 38 civilians have also been killed since the beginning of the year.