Five Naxalites were gunned down in two encounters with security forces in the Indravati National Park area of Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh, police said on Saturday. This brings the total to seven Naxalites neutralised in the last three days, including top leaders Sudhakar and Bhaskar.
What does this mean for the average person? Simply put, it’s a big step towards making the region safer. The ongoing operation targets violent Maoist cadres who have long disrupted peace and development in the area.
The operation started on June 4, after security forces received information about the presence of key Maoist leaders like Sudhakar, Telangana State Committee member Bandi Prakash, and others.
The Special Task Force (STF), District Reserve Guard (DRG), and the CRPF’s CoBRA unit worked together to carry out this operation.
Over the last few days, two bodies were recovered after a gunfight on Saturday, and three more after a firefight overnight.
Among the dead is Bhaskar alias Mailarapu Adellu, a special zonal committee member of the Telangana State Committee with a Rs 45 lakh reward on his head. Sudhakar, a central committee member with a Rs 40 lakh bounty, was killed on Thursday.
The identities of five more killed Naxalites, including two women, are yet to be confirmed. Security forces also seized a large cache of weapons, including two AK-47 rifles. Search and area domination operations continue in the forest to find any remaining Maoist fighters.
This operation is part of a larger crackdown that saw the killing of the CPI (Maoist) general secretary Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju earlier on May 21 in the Bastar region. Such strikes weaken Maoist influence and help bring peace to troubled zones.
As expected in jungle warfare, some security personnel suffered injuries due to snakebites, honeybee stings, and dehydration. They received prompt medical treatment and are recovering.
In a nutshell, the security forces’ success shows the government’s determination to rid the region of violent insurgents. It also sends a clear message to other Maoist cadres hiding in forests: the heat is on.
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