Dantewada:

Nine Maoists were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, a senior police official said.

The gunfight broke out around 10.30 am in the forest along the border of Dantewada and Bijapur districts when a joint team of security forces was out on an anti-Maoist operation, Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range Sundarraj P told PTI.

Personnel belonging to the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were involved in the operation, which was launched based on inputs about the presence of Maoists belonging to its west Bastar division unit, he said.

The intermittent exchange of fire lasted for a long duration, following which the bodies of nine Maoists clad in ‘uniform’ were recovered from the spot, he said.

Besides, a huge cache of weapons was also seized from the encounter site, he said.

Security personnel were reported to be safe and the search operation was still underway in the area, he added.

Bastar region comprises seven districts, including Dantewada and Bijapur.

With this incident, 154 Maoists have been gunned down by the security forces in different encounters in Chhattisgarh so far this year, the police said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Raipur:

In a major anti-insurgency operation, eight Maoists were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh today, the police said.

Bijapur district comes under the Bastar Lok Sabha constituency, which will go to polls in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections on April 19.

The gunfight took place at around 6 am in a forest near Lendra village under Gangaloor police station area, when a joint team of security personnel was out on an anti-Maoist operation, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P told PTI.

Personnel belonging to the District Reserve Guard, Special Task Force, Central Reserve Police Force and its elite unit Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) were involved in the operation, he said.

After the exchange of fire stopped, the bodies of four Maoists along with a light machine gun and other weapons were recovered from the spot, he said.

Later, four more bodies were found at the encounter site, the IG said, adding that search operation was still underway in the area.

Notably, Maoists carry out the Tactical Counter Offensive Campaign (TCOC) in the summer season between March and June every year and step up their activities. A large number of attacks on security forces have taken place in the Bastar region during this period.

On March 27, six Maoists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Basaguda area of Bijapur, police earlier said.

With the latest incident, 41 Maoists have been killed so far this year in separate encounters with security forces in Bastar region, comprising seven districts including Bijapur, according to police.