Security forces kill 10 Naxalites in Chhattisgarh, CM hails Bastar’s path to peace

Guwahati, Nov 23: As many as 10 Naxalites, including three women, were shot dead in an enounter with security personnel in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district on Friday.

Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai praised the security forces and declared that the Bastar region has entered a new period of peace and development.

According to Sundarraj P, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range), the shooting took place in the morning in a forest close to Bhandarpadar village, which is under the jurisdiction of the Bhejji police station.

Reportedly, a joint team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxalite operation in the area.

Sundarraj stated that members of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and District Reserve Guard (DRG) began the operation after receiving information from the Konta and Kistaram area committees of the presence of Maoists in the forested hills of Korajguda, Dantespuram, Nagaram, and Bhandarpadar villages.

"Bodies of 10 Naxalites, including three women, clad in 'uniform', have been recovered from the spot," he stated. According to him, 12 weapons were also seized, including an AK-47, an INSAS rifle, a self-loading rifle (SLR), and barrel grenade launchers (BGLs).

As per reports, two of the dead have been identified as Lakhma Madvi, a member of the area committee, and Madkam Masa (42), a member of the divisional committee and military in-charge of the Maoists' south Bastar division. They were carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh and Rs 8 lakh, respectively.

The other deceased included Masa's wife Dudhi Huni (35), his guard Kowasi Kesa, Madkam Jitu, and Madkam Kosi, he said, adding that the four were members of the PLGA platoon No. 4 and carried a bounty of Rs 2 lakh each.