A Maoist carrying a Rs 1 crore bounty was among 14 killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district, officials said today.<\/p>\n
Jayram alias Chalapathi, a member of the Maoists’ Central Committee, was killed in the exchange of fire that took place late Monday night and early Tuesday in a forest along the Chhattisgarh-Odisha border.<\/p>\n
A joint team of security personnel from the District Reserve Guard (DRG), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), CoBRA from Chhattisgarh and Special Operation Group (SOG) from Odisha were involved in the operation.<\/p>\n
The operation was launched based on intelligence about the presence of Maoists in the Kularighat reserve forest of Chhattisgarh, just five kilometres from the border of Odisha’s Nuapada district.<\/p>\n
A large cache of firearms, ammunition and IEDs, including a self-loading rifle, were recovered from the encounter site, an official said.<\/p>\n
A massive search operation is underway in the area.<\/p>\n
Union Home Minister Amit Shah<\/a>, who has vowed to eradicate Maoists by March 2026, called the fresh encounter “another mighty blow to Naxalism”.<\/p>\n “Our security forces achieved major success towards building a Naxal-free Bharat. The CRPF, SoG Odisha, and Chhattisgarh Police neutralised 14 Naxalites in a joint operation along the Odisha-Chhattisgarh border,” he posted on X.<\/p>\n Another mighty blow to Naxalism. Our security forces achieved major success towards building a Naxal-free Bharat. The CRPF, SoG Odisha, and Chhattisgarh Police neutralised 14 Naxalites in a joint operation along the Odisha-Chhattisgarh border. With our resolve for a Naxal-free\u2026<\/p>\n\n