An intermittent encounter between the joint security forces team and Naxalites broke out in Chhattisgarh in the South Abujmarh area along the border of Narayanpur and Dantewada districts since 6 pm on Saturday. The Inspector-General of Police, Bastar, P Sundarraj said that District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Special Task Force (STF) personnel of four districts are involved in the operation.
The intermittent exchange of fire was still underway, he said, adding that further details are awaited. Considered a Maoist bastion until recently, security forces have neutralised many Naxalites in Abujhmaad in the past few months.
Naxalite killed in Gariaband
Earlier on Friday, a Naxalite was killed in an encounter with security forces in Gariaband district of Chhattisgarh, police said. The gunfight had taken place took in the forest area of Kandeshar village under Indagaon police station limits on the Chhattisgarh-Odisha border when a team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxal operation, an official said.
"The Naxalites started firing on the security forces when the latter reached the forest area of Kandeshar village.The security personnel also retaliated," he said. After the exchange of fire stopped, the body of a Naxalite was recovered from the spot along with weapons, he said, adding that intermittent firing was still on in the area.
'Country Naxalism free by 2026'
A December 2024 report from the Union Home Ministry stated that facing tough action from the security forces, the Naxals are making efforts to seep into new areas along inter-state borders but without any notable success.
The government's multipronged approach including anti-Naxal operations by paramilitary and state police and simultaneous development initiatives in Maoist-affected areas has resulted in a 48 per cent reduction in violent incidents, from 1,136 in 2013 to 594 in 2023, the report said.
A 65 per cent reduction was also noticed in the deaths of civilians and security forces, which came down from 397 to 138 in 2023 as compared to 2013, it said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said that the country would be free of Naxalism by March 31, 2026.
(With PTI inputs)
