31 Maoists, two securitymen die in fierce Bastar gunbattle | India Information – The Occasions of India

RAIPUR: At the very least 31 Maoist insurgents and two safety personnel have been killed Sunday in a fierce gunfight within the dense forests of Chhattisgarh’s Bastar area, one of many final Naxal strongholds within the nation. The operation is ongoing and officers count on the Maoist dying toll to rise.
That is the second-largest Maoist casualty depend in a single safety strike, after 38 guerrillas have been gunned down in Narayanpur’s Thulthuli on October 3 final yr. Since 2024, greater than 280 Maoists have been killed in Bastar. The variety of Maoists killed this yr has risen to 81 in simply six weeks. Main operations embody the killing of 16 Naxal fighters in Gariaband on Jan 21 and eight in Gangaloor on February 2. Safety forces have additionally confronted fatalities. On January 6, eight constables and a driver have been killed when Maoists focused their automobile with an IED weighing practically 70kg in Bijapur.
Union dwelling minister Amit Shah praised the safety forces for the profitable operation. “The nation will all the time be indebted to those heroes…. I as soon as once more reaffirm that by March 31, 2026, we are going to eradicate Naxalism from the roots of this nation in order that no citizen loses their life as a consequence of it,” he stated. The gunfight erupted early Sunday after a contingent of over 650 safety personnel launched a coordinated operation from a number of instructions to hem in insurgents within the jungles of Bijapur’s Indravati Nationwide Park.

State transitioning from gun-tantra to gantantra: Chhattisgarh CM
Intelligence reported the presence of a giant group of Maoists and senior commanders.
By late afternoon, 31 our bodies of Maoist guerrillas had been recovered, Bastar deputy inspector common of police Kamlochan Kashyap stated. Two securitymen have been wounded, aside from the 2 killed.
A big cache of Maoist weapons was seized, together with AK-47s, SLRs, INSAS and .303 rifles, barrel grenade launchers (BGL) and explosives. Reinforcements have been dispatched to the positioning, practically 150km from the district HQ and 420km from Raipur. Indravati was the positioning of one other large operation on January 12, when safety forces killed three Maoists. The park borders the Maoist headquarters of Abujhmarh, which straddles in states like Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
The realm has lengthy served as a stronghold for insurgents, offering them with a secure zone for recruitment and inter-state motion.
Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai declared that the state is transitioning from “gun-tantra” (rule of the gun) to “gantantra” (democracy). “Our troopers have entered the Naxal strongholds and are eliminating them. The success achieved by our forces is commendable, and I salute their bravery…,” he stated, whereas condoling the deaths of two safety males.