Sukma, June 12: In a major breakthrough in the ongoing anti-Maoist operations in Chhattisgarh, security forces recovered the bodies of two senior Maoists following an intense encounter in the forested terrain of Dunampara Pusgunna within Kukanar police station in the Sukma district, officials said on Thursday.

The deceased have been identified as Muchaki Baman, a commander of the Katekalyan Area Committee carrying a bounty of Rs 5 lakh, and senior Maoist cadre Anita Avalam, both considered key operatives in the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist outfit.

Baman was a resident of Chikpal under Katekalyan police limits in Dantewada district, while Avalam hailed from the Bijapur region, the officials said.

The joint team, comprising personnel of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and local police, launched the operation based on intelligence inputs indicating Maoist presence in the hilly jungles linked to the Katekalyan Area Committee.

According to the Superintendent of Police Kiran Chavan, the exchange of fire began at around 2 p.m. and lasted for several hours, officials added.

In addition to the two bodies, security forces recovered an INSAS rifle, a Bharmar firearm, and a significant cache of explosives as well as Maoist materials from the site.

The seized items include four gelatin sticks, 10 detonators, 17 rounds of INSAS ammunition, five cartridges of 12-bore ammunition, a soap bomb, a tiffin bomb, wire coils, safety fuses, and other incriminating materials.

Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range), Sundarraj P, said that the latest operation is part of a sustained campaign against Maoist extremism in the region.

He noted that between January 2024 and June 2025, security forces under the Bastar division have recovered the bodies of 411 Maoists through coordinated action.

He said that security forces such as the DRG, Special Task Force, Commando Battalion for Resolute Action, Central Reserve Police Force, Border Security Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Central Armed Police Forces, and the Bastar Fighters are working with determination under the banner of "Sankalp: Naxal Mukt Bastar Mission".

IGP Sundarraj highlighted that the Maoist movement, once emblematic of fear and disruption in Bastar, has reached a stage of fading into oblivion.

He added that the region is now witnessing the early promise of peace and development, with operations continuing to dismantle the insurgency's remaining strongholds. (IANS)

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