In a fresh recovery of explosive substances looted by Left Wing Extremists in Odisha’s Sundargarh district, security forces have retrieved 700 kilograms of the looted materials hidden deep inside the dense forest area of the district, in a refreshing relief for the government agencies, a senior police official informed on Wednesday.
It has come as a refreshing relief for the law-enforcing agencies of both the bordering States, as apprehension of misuse of looted explosives by the left-wing extremists loomed large.
A case has been registered at K Balang police station in this connection, he said, adding that DGP Yogesh Bahadur Khurania rushed to the area on Wednesday to review the situation.
Police sources also suspect that a third Maoist may have been killed in the gunfight, although his body has not yet been recovered.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Thursday strongly condemned the encounter of 27 Maoists, including their general secretary Nambala Kesavarao, in Chhattisgarh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday hailed the security forces for neutralizing 27 Maoists at Narayanpur in Chhattisgarh.
Several organisations have written to President Draupadi Murmu urging her to intervene and ensure military operations are halted, a ceasefire declared, and peace talks initiated in the Maoist-dominated tribal regions of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, and Jharkhand.
In a tragic incident, a Chhattisgarh Armed Forces (CAF) constable, Manoj Pujari, was killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast triggered by Maoist insurgents in the dense forests of Bijapur district.
Days before Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s scheduled visit to Chhattisgarh, the outlawed CPI (Maoist) has issued a press statement proposing peace talks, urging the government to halt security operations in Maoist-affected regions.
The bodies of all slain Naxal insurgents have been recovered, while one District Reserve Guard (DRG) jawan, Raju Oyami, was martyred.
