At least eight Maoists were killed in an exchange of fire with the CoBRA commandos of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and local police at around 5 am on Monday in the Lugu Hills of the Lalpania region in Jharkhand’s Bokaro district.
Police said the bodies were still being recovered and that the final number of those killed was yet to be ascertained.
Inspector General of Police Amol Vinukant Homkar said the encounter and search operations are still underway.
“We are receiving updates constantly, so it is too early to provide final figures. However, according to preliminary information, eight Maoists have been killed. The number could be higher. A large cache of weapons and ammunition has been recovered from the site,” he said.
According to sources, the troops of 209 Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) conducted the operation and no injuries were reported to the troops.
The weapons recovered include one AK-series rifle, one SLR, three INSAS rifles, one pistol, and eight country-made Bharmar rifles.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
