Raipur, August 13;Three members of Chattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) and at least one suspected Maoist have been killed in an exchange of fire in Narayanpur district, about 400 km south of State capital Raipur. Head constable Sombahadur Thapa and constables Manoj Singh and Mahendra Singh have been killed in the encounter.
“We have recovered the body of one Maoist, but reportedly more have been killed,” said SP, Narainpur Amit Kamble. Identity of the rebel fighter is yet to be ascertained.
The incident took place when a joint team of CAF and district force were engaged in a search operation in the forest of Kaushalnar, about 40 km south of the district headquarters Narayanpur. According to Mr. Kamble, the rebels opened fire on the forces killing the CAF members.
Unlike in the past, more Maoist-securitymen encounters are taking place this year during monsoon.
On Monday, an encounter took place in the Abujhmarh area of the State. However, there were no casualties.
Additional forces have been deployed and search is continuing in Kausalnarh area, said Mr. Kamble.
