Kandhamal District, June 30, 2025: Security personnel killed two persons they believe to be CPI (Maoist) cadres during a fierce encounter near the Puranjiab Reserved Forest within the Baliguda police station limits in Odisha’s Kandhamal district on Monday, a police official announced to the press today.
Acting on specific intelligence inputs regarding the presence of Maoists in the region, jawans of the District Voluntary Force (DVF), Special Operations Group (SOG), and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) launched an anti-Maoist combing operation in the dense forest area. This operation, ongoing for the past two days, was conducted under the leadership of Kandhamal Superintendent of Police Harish B.C., the police official declared.
At approximately 12 noon, the security personnel encountered a group of armed persons alleged by them to be Maoists, leading to a heavy exchange of fire. In the subsequent encounter, two individuals were killed, the police official said.
According to the police official, the deceased persons have been identified as Manku, an Area Committee Member (ACM) of the Maoist party, and Chandan, a cadre of the Maoist party active in the district.
Following the encounter, security forces recovered a cache of arms and Maoist-related materials from the site, including a rifle, a revolver, live ammunition, a walkie-talkie, batteries, and other incriminating items. The bodies of the deceased Maoists were also retrieved from the location, the police official alleged in his report to the press.
The police official stated that the area of the encounter has been cordoned off, and a large combing operation is underway to locate other alleged Maoists who may have fled during the firefight, adding that the police suspect that more Maoists could be hiding in the dense forest, and efforts are being made to prevent their escape into neighboring districts or across the state border.
The police official concluded his remarks by informing the press that further investigations are underway to identify the network and support systems used by the two slain persons police claim are Maoists, and that security has been tightened in adjoining areas as a precautionary measure.
Source : https://organiser.org/2025/06/30/300243/bharat/odisha-major-success-for-kandhamal-police-in-anti-maoist-operation-two-top-maoists-eliminated/
Source : https://kalingatv.com/odisha/2-maoists-eliminated-by-security-personnel-in-forest-of-odishas-kandhamal-district/
Source : https://ommcomnews.com/odisha-news/two-maoists-killed-in-encounter-in-kandhamal-forest/