According to the police, three members of the security service were injured during the operation – File: Photo/AFP
Chhattisgarh: 29 Maoist rebels were killed in a clash with security forces in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh.
As reported by the AFP news agency, Chhattisgarh has been under tension for a long time and deaths in clashes with security forces are among the bloodiest incidents in the state.
The clash between security forces and Maoist rebels took place on the outskirts of Chhattisgarh state, which has seen several bloody operations with Maoist fighters this year.
All 29 Maoists were killed in Chhattisgarh’s Kankir district, south of Raipur state.
According to reports, security has been beefed up in Chhattisgarh ahead of India’s long-running general elections, which began on Friday.
District Police Chief IK Alisela confirmed the number of casualties and said that the operation against the insurgents was carried out jointly by the Paramilitary Border Security Force and the police.
He said a BSF official and a Kankir policeman were injured in the operation and a large number of arms, including automatic firearms, were recovered from the possession of the rebels.
Earlier, IK Alisila said the dead included rebel commander Shankar Rao, whose head was set at $300,000.
The BSF said in a statement that the operation was launched on Monday following a tip-off about the movement of Maoists in Banaganda village.
Inspector General of Police in the state’s Bastar district, Sandraj Patilingam, told AFP that three members of the government forces were injured in the operation but their condition was stable.
It should be noted that the fighters against the Indian government in Chhattisgarh call themselves Naxal rebels and claim to be fighting for the betterment of people in the suburbs and poor areas, and their operations have been going on since 1967.
The clash with Maoist rebels in Chhattisgarh is the second such operation this month after 13 rebels were killed on April 2.
According to police data, 80 Maoists have been killed in the state so far this year.
India has deployed thousands of security personnel to fight Maoist insurgents in the heart of the “Red Corridor”, which stretches across central, southern and eastern states where Indian government forces have suffered their worst attacks in years.
