Senior Maoist commander carrying Rs 8L reward killed in Chhattisgarh encounter

Raipur: Ahead of the March 31 deadline set by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to eradicate Naxalism from Chhattisgarh, the security forces on Thursday gunned down a senior Maoist commander carrying a cash reward of Rs 8 lakh during an ongoing encounter in south Bijapur region of Chhattisgarh morning. The AK-47 rifle carried by the Maoists was recovered by the forces.The gunfight broke out in the Chinnagellur–Tarrem forest and hill belt in Tarrem region after joint teams of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and CoBRA launched a search operation on specific intelligence inputs about the presence of armed Maoists in the area. Police said intermittent firing began around 7 am and continued through the day as forces tightened the cordon and carried out intensive combing in the dense terrain.In a statement, Bijapur police said the body recovered from the encounter site was identified as Udham Singh, a DVCM (Divisional Committee Member) of the South Bastar division and in-charge of platoon number 30. He was a resident of Kottaguda in Basaguda region and was the most prominent cadre left in the region who continued to remain active.Security forces recovered one AK-47 rifle with two magazines and 28 rounds, along with cordex wire, a wireless set, a mobile phone, pouches, a backpack, a tiffin bag and other Maoist material from the spot, police said, adding that the search operation is still underway to rule out the presence of more cadres or hidden explosives.According to police records, Udham Singh joined the Maoist organisation as a party member in 2002-03 and had remained active along the Chhattisgarh–Telangana border, working in the Pamed area committee over the past three years. Police said nine criminal cases were registered against him across Bijapur police stations. Officials also linked him to multiple incidents, including an attack on a police party in the Gundam forests in 2023, a Basaguda encounter in 2024 in the Putkel–Chipurbhatti forest belt, and an alleged attack on the Jidpalli camp in 2024.Bijapur SP Jitendra Yadav said a detailed report would be shared after the completion of the operation and post-encounter verification. Police also reiterated district-wide figures on the anti-Maoist campaign, claiming that since January 2024, Bijapur has seen 232 Maoists killed in encounters, 1,163 arrests, and 888 surrenders. Officials said 163 Maoists were killed in 2025, and 11 have been killed so far in 2026.The operation remains in progress, with reinforcements deployed and combing continuing in the Tarrem belt, police said.