IN YET another major blow to the Left Wing Extremists (LWEs), six ultras, including four women cadres were neutralised in a fierce gunbattle between security forces and outlaws on a forested patch near Pesallapadu under Kistaram police station limits. It was a joint operation launched by Chhattisgarh and Telangana Police on Monday morning. The skirmish took place between 6 am and 7 am. Apart from the bodies of the slain outlaws, arms and ammunitions were also recovered from the encounter spot, which is located on Chhattisgarh-Telangana border. However, identities of the slain outlaws were yet to be established. On the basis of Intelligence inputs that a group of 50 to 60 Maoists had gathered in Charla, the bordering area of Chhattisgarh and Telangana and the extremists were planning to attack Charla and Kistaram police stations, a joint team of Greyhounds, Bhadradri Kothagudem police, Sukma District Reserve Guard and 141 battalion of Central Reserve Police Force had been mobilised for search operation. While crossing south east region of Pesallapadu forest areas, the security personnel came under heavy firing of Naxals hiding behind trees. Security personnel also took their positions and retaliated in self defence. Naxals could not sustain and vanished into the dense forest.

 

After the guns fell silent, the security forces scanned the entire spot. They recovered bodies of six Naxals including four women cadres along with two .303 rifles, three DBBLs, four rocket launchers and huge quantity of Naxal materials from the spot. Terming the operation as a huge success, Sukma Superintendent of Police Sunil Sharma claimed security forces inflicted a heavy blow to the Kistaram area committee of Maoists, which had been instrumental in carrying out various deadly attacks in the past. “There are total five area committees of Maoists operating in Sukma. In the last six months, security forces have been successful in effectively controlling the activities of the Kerlapal and Konta area committees,” Sharma said. Top cadres from the Kerlapal area committee surrendered in the last one year while in August this year, a local organisation squad (LOS) commander and his deputy from the Konta area committee were killed in an encounter with the Sukma police, he said.

 

“Now that the Kistaram area committee has been significantly decimated, the next target will be to neutralise two other committees - Katekalyan and Jagargunda,” he added. Earlier in the day, Telangana's Bhadradri Kothagudem District Superintendent of Police Sunil Dutt said the ultras were killed in a joint operation of the Telangana and Chhattisgarh Police and the CRPF. He said they received a tip-off that Maoists were trying to attack the security forces and combing was stepped up in the area.