New Delhi: Two women Maoists were killed in an encounter with the security forces in the Gandhamardan Hills area of Odisha’s Bolangir district on Thursday.
“On the basis of a very specific intelligence input about the presence of Maoists in Bolangir and Bargarh area, we had launched an operation on Wednesday midnight,” Odisha DGP Sunil Bansal told reporters.
The security personnel saw the movement of five Maoists in the area at about 10.30 a.m. on Thursday morning.
Then, there was an exchange of fire to chase them.
In the exchange of fire that lasted for about half an hour, two of the Maoists were neutralised by the security forces.
Later, during the search of the area, bodies of two female Maoists in uniform and two INSAS rifles were recovered, Bansal said.
Both the deceased Maoists have been identified. They were from Chhattisgarh, and belong to Bolangir-Bargarh-Mahasamud (BBM) Maoist Division, he said.
Both the Naxals neutralised on Thursday were carrying a reward of Rs 4 lakh each on their head, he added.
“The remaining three Maoists were able to escape from the place. Our teams, who have been there, intensified the anti-Maoist operation. We remain hopeful that we will be able to capture them or neutralise them depending on the circumstances,” said the DGP.