Sukma: In a significant operation against Naxal insurgents, ten Naxals were killed in an encounter with the District Reserve Guard (DRG) in southern Sukma, Chhattisgarh, on Friday.
Bastar IG P Sundarraj reported that the security forces seized weapons, including INSAS rifles, AK-47s, SLRs, and other firearms, from the encounter site. A search operation is currently underway to secure the area.
This incident comes on the heels of last week’s anti-insurgency effort in the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, where five Naxals were eliminated, and two security officers were injured in a firefight within the dense forests of north Abujhmad, near the Narayanpur and Kanker district border. As of January 2024, security forces have neutralized 257 Naxals, detained 861, and facilitated the surrender of 789. The death toll from Naxal violence has seen a dramatic decrease, plunging 90% from a high of 1,005 in 2010 to 96 by September 2024, as per India Today.
For the first time in over forty years, the death count dropped below 100 in 2022, indicating a substantial reduction in Naxal activities.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has recently declared that Chhattisgarh is progressing towards eradicating Naxalism by 2026. In pursuit of this goal, security forces are ramping up operations across major insurgency-affected areas.
