The eight naxalites killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district on Saturday were senior cadres carrying cumulative rewards of `16 Lakh, police said.
The members of the outlawed Maoist organisation were gunned down during an anti-Naxal operation in a forest near Todka village under the Gangaloor police station area. Two personnel of the District Reserve Guard, a unit of state police, were also injured in the exchange of fire.
Of the neutralised Naxalites, Kamlesh Neelkanth (24), a member of the Gangaloor area committee under the west Bastar division of Maoists, carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his head, a senior police official said on Sunday.
Two others, identified as Tati Kamlu and Mangal Tati of the Gangaloor LOS (local organization squad), carried a reward of Rs three lakh each on their heads, he said.
The rest, identified as Lachchu Potam (40), Shankar Tati (26), Raju Tati, Vijju Padam (22) and Sannu Tati (40), were active in various wings of Maoists and carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh each, he said.
One Insas rifle, one Barrel Grenade Launcher (BGL) and its 10 shells, two 12-bore rifles, four muzzle-loading rifles and a huge cache of explosives items were recovered from the encounter site, he said.
So far this year, 49 Naxalites have been killed in separate encounters in the state. Of them, 33 were killed in the Bastar division comprising seven districts, including Bijapur.
On January 20-21, police said, 16 Naxalites were killed in an encounter with security personnel in the state's Gariaband district, which is a part of the Raipur division.
Last year, 219 Naxalites were neutralised by security forces in separate encounters in the state, as per police.
