Bhubaneswar: CPI (Maoist) central committee member Ganesh Uike, who carried a bounty of ₹1.1 crore and headed the banned outfit’s operations in Odisha, was among four Maoists killed in an encounter with security forces in Kandhamal district on Thursday, police said.
The encounter took place in a forest under the Chakapad police station area, following an intense gun battle between Maoists and security personnel. Senior officials confirmed that Uike, aged 69, was neutralised along with three other Maoists, including two women, whose identities are yet to be established.
Uike, also known by several aliases including Pakka Hanumantu, Rajesh Tiwari, Chamru and Rupa, was a native of Pullemala village in Telangana’s Nalgonda district. Police said his elimination is a major blow to Maoist activities in Odisha.
Earlier, on Wednesday night, two Maoists from Chhattisgarh were killed in another exchange of fire in the Gumma forest area under Belghar police limits. They were identified as CPI (Maoist) area committee member Bari alias Rakesh and dalam member Amrit. Together, they carried a reward of ₹23.65 lakh.
Addressing a press conference, Odisha Director General of Police Y B Khurania said the killing of a central committee member marked one of the biggest successes against Maoists in the state in recent years. He said the operation has significantly weakened the Maoist network in Odisha.
Khurania added that anti-Naxal operations are continuing along the Kandhamal-Ganjam inter-district border and expressed confidence that further breakthroughs are likely. He reiterated the commitment of Odisha Police to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s target of eliminating Naxalism by March 2026.
Police officials said the operation was launched based on specific intelligence inputs and involved 23 teams, including 20 units of the Special Operations Group of Odisha Police, two teams of the CRPF and one unit of the BSF. During searches, security forces recovered two INSAS rifles and one .303 rifle from the encounter site.
The latest gunfights come a day after 22 Maoists surrendered before senior police officials in Malkangiri district, indicating increased pressure on the outlawed outfit in the region.
