C’garh : 5 Maoists killed in encounter in Abujhmad under Bastar, 3 jawans injured

Raipur: Five Maoists were on Friday gunned down in an encounter with security forces in Abujhmad area under Bastar in Chhattisgarh. Three jawans of district reserve guard (DRG), an exclusive tribal counterinsurgency wing of Chhattisgarh police, were also injured in the incident, police said.

The encounter took place in Gobel jungle along the inter-district border of Narayanpur, Dantewada, and Kondago under Bastar.

The area where the encounter took place falls under Abujhmad, a 4,000 sq km forested region nestled between Bastar in Chhattisgarh and Gadchiroli in Maharashtra.

“Five Naxals were killed and three jawans injured in the incident. Bodies of all the five Maoists were recovered. All the injured jawans are out of danger”, Bastar range inspector general of police P Sunderraj told this newspaper.

Many more ultras were suspected to have been injured in the incident, he said.

This was the fifth major anti-Naxal operation carried out in Abujhmad in the last seven weeks, in which a total 57 Maoists were gunned down by security forces.

Parts of districts of Narayanpur, Bijapur and Kanker in Bastar division fall under Abujhmad, the only un-surveyed area in India.

In the biggest ever strike against Maoists by security forces in Bastar, 29 Naxals were killed in Kanker district on April 16.

On April 30, ten Maoists including three women cadres were gunned down in an encounter with security forces in a forest along Narayanpur and Kanker districts.

On May 10, as many as 12 Naxals were killed in an encounter with security forces in Pedia forest in Bijapur district.

Eight Maoists were killed in an encounter with security forces in a forest along Narayanpur and Bijapur districts on May 23.

Total 118 Maoists have so far been killed in separate encounters in Bastar in the current year.