May 21, 2021. It was early morning. Three teams of C60 commandos from Gadchiroli police, part of an anti-Naxal operation, travelled nearly 60 km inside the dense forests of Etapalli tehsil, where they engaged in a gunbattle with 60-70 Maoists, who fired at them from a hilltop, and managed to neutralise 13 of them, including a Maoist who was allegedly involved in the killing of 15 policemen in 2019. Two months before it, Gadchiroli police’s C60 commandos had neutralised five Maoists in Khobramendha area of Kurkheda tehsil in north Gadchiroli, which included the mastermind of the 2019 attack. Ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, a total of 31 officers and personnel involved in the two operations have been awarded the Police Gallantry Medal (PMG), which they will receive from the Maharashtra Governor. Only the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), with 48 medals, received more Gallantry medals than Maharashtra. Overall, 56 police forces across India received a total of 140 Gallantry medals. “About 1,278 police personnel from Gadchiroli, Gondia and Chandrapur also received medals for internal security operations,” said an officer from Gadchiroli police. The May 21 operations in which 13 Naxals were neutralised is seen as one of the most successful operations undertaken by Gadchiroli police. It was undertaken following a tip-off received by 31-year-old S N Deshmukh, a police sub-inspector, that 60 to 70 armed Maoists had gathered in Paidi village. Paidi, located around 60 km inside the jungles from a police camp, was a Maoist safe haven. Three teams ‘A, B and C'’were formed and sent inside the forests to search for Maoists on May 20 evening. While one team spent the night in Jalegaon, the other two spent the night at Korkuti, both 4 to 5 km away from Paidi. “The task was daunting as it was 'amavas' (no moon day) that day and we had to coordinate and move ahead in three different groups,” said Deshmukh. Early morning next day, the three teams began their search for Naxals again. Team A split into two more groups as a tactical move. Around 6.15 am, when one group of team A reached Paidi, the Maoists hiding on a hilltop, at a height of 300 metres, ambushed and opened fire at them. “We appealed to them to drop their weapons but they kept firing at us and we fired back. Two of my mates were injured. We had to give them first aid and then provide cover fire. I thought I would die but kept firing at them. We managed to overpower the Maoists who ran inside the jungle. Hearing gunshots Team B and C came to our rescue from Korkuti. The gunbattle went on but finally we managed to overpower them and neutralised 13 of them who had a bounty of Rs 64 lakh on them,” Deshmukh added. Apart from Deshmukh, PI Sandip Mandlik (then Assistant Inspector) received the Gallantry medal for the third time and IPS Maneesh Kalwaniya for the second time for the encounter in March. Mandlik said, “The terrain where the encounter took place was the biggest hurdle and it was a time when violent activities were planned. We encountered Bhaskar Hichami (46), a Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC) member of CPI (Maoist), with 155 offences against his name and carrying a reward of Rs 25 lakh. He masterminded the 2019 attack where 15 policemen had died.” In Padma list, 12 names from state Mumbai: The Padma awards, announced by President Droupadi Murmu, includes 12 names from Maharashtra. Ace percussionist Ustad Zakir Hussain, one of the tallest names in the world of rhythm, has bestowed with the Padma Vibhushan. The Padma Bhushan was awarded to leading industrialist and Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla; Physicist and Emeritus Professor at the Department of Physics, IISER, Pune, Prof Deepak Dhar and veteran playback singer Suman Kalyanpur. Among those awarded the Padma Shri are Bhiku Ramji Idate, Chairman, National Commission for Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-nomadic Tribes (NCDNT), in the field of social work. Stockbroker and billionaire investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala (62), who passed away last year, was posthumously conferred the Padma Shri. Others who have received the Padma Shri are folk artist Parshuram Komaji Khune, Prabhakar Mande for his work in the field of literature and education and Gajanan Mane in the field of social work. Other awardees include Ramesh Patange RSS ideologue and former editor of the Marathi weekly Vivek, actress Raveena Tandon and Coomi Wadia recognised internationally as a conductor of choral music. —ENS
