Naxalite killed in encounter with security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Sukma

Raipur: A Naxalite was killed in an encounter with security forces in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday, police said.

The encounter took place early in the morning in the jungles on a hill near Tumalpad village under Chintagufa police station limits when a joint team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxalite operation, Sukma Superintendent of Police Kiran Chavan said.

Personnel belonging to the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Bastar Fighters - both units of the state police and district force - were involved in the operation, he said.

After the exchange of fire stopped, the body of a Naxalite was recovered along with a weapon and a huge cache of Maoist-related material from the spot, he said.

"The identity of the deceased Naxalite is yet to be ascertained and a search operation is still underway in the area," he added.

With this incident, a total of 154 Naxalites have been gunned down by security forces in separate encounters so far this year in the state's Bastar division comprising seven districts, including Sukma, police said.