RANCHI: The death toll in Jharkhand’s biggest anti Maoist operation, “Operation MegaBuru”, rose to 19 on Friday after security forces recovered four more bodies of alleged Maoists from the Saranda forests in Chaibasa, police sources said.
Fifteen bodies were recovered on Thursday following a fierce gun battle between security forces and Maoists, while the additional four were found during an intensive search operation on Friday.
The encounter began on Thursday and continued into Friday, with intermittent firing reported from the forest area. The entire region has been cordoned off and search operations are still under way.
According to police sources, more bodies are likely to be recovered as the squad led by Patiram Manjhi alias Anal Da is believed to have had around 22 members.
Security forces suspect the entire squad may have been neutralised. The bodies were scattered over a radius of nearly two kilometres, which has delayed recovery efforts, they said.
Anal Da, who was allegedly killed in the encounter, was one of the most wanted Maoist leaders in the region and carried a bounty of Rs 1 crore on his head. His death is being seen as a major breakthrough for the security forces.
Three helicopters, night vision high range drones and satellite monitoring were deployed during the operation. Security forces also fired from helicopters during the engagement, sources said.
Maoist presence in Jharkhand is now largely confined to the Saranda jungles after they were driven out from other pockets of the state.
Security agencies estimate that only a handful of Maoists remain in the region, where thousands of IEDs have allegedly been planted, posing a serious challenge to the forces.
The state police had launched a joint operation in the Kolhan and Saranda jungles of Chaibasa in November 2022 after receiving intelligence inputs about the presence of top Maoist leaders in the area.
These reportedly included Misir Besra, a senior CPI (Maoist) commander who also carries a bounty of Rs 1 crore.