NAGPUR: At least six Maoists were gunned down in a fresh gunfight in Gadchiroli district, barely 24 hours after Sunday's encounter which left 16 rebels dead, official sources said.
The new encounter took place on Monday evening in Jimlagatta region of the district with the crack commandos of the C-60 force.
Jimlagatta is 60 km from the scene of Sunday's ambush in which 16 Maoists including three high-ranking commanders and seven women were killed.
The security forces are continuing intense search and combing operations in entire Gadchiroli since the past two days, resulting in tonight's encounter, the sources, declining to be identified, told IANS.
The gun-battle took place in Rajaram Khandla jungle in Jimalgatta area of the district, Inspector General of Police (Anti-Naxal Operations) Sharad Shelar told PTI.
The elite C-60 commandos of district police were involved in the operation, said another senior police official.
According to an earlier report by PTI, the exact number of slain Naxals was being confirmed, but at least four rebels have been eliminated.
An ANI tweet shows, army officers celebrating the success of two encounters at Gadchiroli:
Shelar also said that police expected to retrieve bodies of many more Naxals from the site of yesterday's encounter, as the combing operation had been made difficult by the heavy rains in the area.
As of now, police have found 16 bodies, and identified 11 of them.
The encounter took place between the Naxals and a team of police commandos and the CRPF in Kasansur forest in Bhamragad yesterday morning.
Maharashtra Director General of Police, earlier today, attributed the success to accurate and specific intelligence, the low morale of the Naxals and divisions in their ranks.
(with PTI inputs)