3 CRPF personnel killed, 14 injured in Naxal attack in Sukma, Chhattisgarh

At least three CRPF personnel, including two commandos of its elite jungle warfare unit CoBRA, were killed and 14 others injured in an encounter with Naxalites along the border of Sukma and Bijapur districts of Chhattisgarh on January 30, police said.Among the three slain personnel, two belonged to the CoBRA’s 201st battalion and one to the CRPF’s 150th battalion, a senior police officer said.Three personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), including two from the specialised Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA), were killed in an encounter with Maoists on the border of Sukma and Bijapur districts in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region. Tekulagudem village, where Tuesday’s encounter took place, was also the site of another encounter in 2021 that left 23 soldiers dead.Earlier this month, Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a review meeting with stakeholders in Raipur on Left Wing Extremism (LWE), where he said the Maoist menace should end in the next three years.

The incident took place hours after a new security camp was established in the village, which is 616 kilometres from state capital Raipur. On Republic Day, the Indian Tricolour was hoisted for the first time in the Sukma-Bijapur area.After setting up the new camp, a joint team of the CoBRA, the Special Task Force (STF) and the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was conducting anti-Naxal operations in Jonaguda-Aliguda area when Maoists opened fire at the personnel, taking advantage of the forest cover.The security personnel fired back, following which Maoists ran away and took cover in the forest. The injured personnel have been airlifted to Raipur for treatment. The three deceased were identified as constables Deven C and Pawan Kumar from the CoBRA 201 and constable Lambdhar Sinha from CRPF battalion 150. The CoBRA is a specialised force under the CRPF to combat extremists and insurgents in guerrilla/jungle warfare operations.January has also seen five alleged Naxals, including two women, being killed in encounters in the state. A six-month-old girl had also died in cross-firing during an anti-Naxal operation.