C'garh: 39 killed in Maoist-CRPF encounter

Jagdalpur, July 10: At least 14 security personnel and about 25 Naxalites were killed last night in a heavy gun battle between security forces and Maoist rebels in the thick forest area between Regergetta and Uppelmetta villages in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh, police said today.

About 44 security personnel, mostly from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), district police and Special Police Officers (SPOs), went missing last night after a Maoist attack on them in the thick forests.

''We are not ruling out the possibility of more casualties.

We have intensified our search and combing operations in the area.

Additional security forces have been deployed. It will take some more time to get a clear picture about the casualties and the number of injured'', a senior police official said.

Claiming that there were heavy casualties on the rebel side also, he said at least two dozen Maoists were killed in the encounter with police.

Preliminary reports indicated that 115 security personnel, comprising 28 CRPF jawans, 84 SPOs and three district police personnel, were on a search operation in the forest when the Maoist rebels unleashed an attack on them last night. Of them, 60 SPOs, 10 CRPF jawans and a district police jawan returned this morning.

Local youth are appointed as Special Police Officers on a monthly honorarium of Rs 1500 to assist security personnel in anti-naxalite operations in Bastar region.

Meanwhile, official reports said armed Naxalites, numbering about 300, had ambushed security personnel in the forest between Regergetta and Uppelgetta villages while they were returning after raiding a Maoist hideout in the forest last evening. Though reinforcement had been sent to the spot, their operation was apparently hampered due to heavy rains and low visibility in the forest. However, heavy gun battle continued throughout the night, causing casualties on both sides, police sources said.

Additional security forces had to move cautiously in the hilly terrain and the forests in view of the possibility of Naxalites triggering landmine blasts.

Communist Party of India (Maoist) and its military wing Peoples' Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA) have stepped up activities since June 2005 after local tribals joined the anti-naxalite movement 'Salwa Judum' in south Bastar region, bordering Andhra Pradesh.

However, the Maoists termed it a state-sponsored campaign saying that it was a ploy to use the local tribals as a human shield in the armed conflict.

In view of the increased hostilities, residents of about 300 villages deserted their home and took shelter in about 15 relief camps, mainly in Dantewada district.

UNI