Google Maps locates Bijapur in Chhattisgarh.
A day after four Maoists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, two more Maoist cadres were neutralized in the same operation in the region on Sunday (January 18, 2026), police said.
The latest gunfight took place in the morning in the forested hills in the northwestern region of the district, where a joint team of security forces was conducting an anti-Maoist operation, Bijapur Superintendent of Police Jitendra Yadav said.
Four Maoists were killed in the same operation on Saturday (January 17, 2025). They were identified as senior cadre Dilip Vedja, who was a division committee member, area committee members Madvi Kosa and Lakkhi Madkam and party member Radha Metta.
Also read | Senior Maoist killed in encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh
All four were active in the National Park Area Committee of the Maoists, the SP said.
The identity of the two Maoists killed on Sunday (January 18, 2026) could not be ascertained yet, he added.
The operation involves personnel of the Special Task Force (STF) and District Reserve Guard (DRG), both police units, and CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action), an elite group of the CRPF.
The operation was launched on Saturday (January 17, 2026) following specific intelligence information about the presence of Vedji and other armed cadres in the area.
Six weapons, including an AK-47 rifle, an INSAS rifle, a carbine and a .303 rifle, were recovered from the encounter sites. Search operations in the region are continuing, the official said.
This operation has killed at least 20 Maoists in separate encounters in the state this year.
On January 3, a total of 14 Maoists were shot dead in two encounters in the Bastar region, which covers seven districts, including Bijapur.
Last year, 285 Maoists were killed in clashes with security forces in the state. The Center has set a deadline of March 31, 2026 to eradicate left-wing extremism from the country.
Published – 18 Jan 2026 18:57 IST
