VISAKHAPATNAM, Nov 19: A second fierce encounter in just 24 hours has left six to seven Maoists dead in Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitharamaraju (ASR) district, with police indicating that several top leaders may be among those killed. The exchange of fire erupted on Wednesday morning in the Meredumilli forest region—an area already tense after Tuesday’s encounter in which notorious Maoist commander Madvi Hidma, his wife, and four others were neutralised.
Police sources said all the slain Maoists are believed to be from Chhattisgarh. Wednesday’s operation is being viewed as a continuation of the combing operations launched after 19 Maoists managed to escape the previous day’s firefight. Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) Mahesh Chandra Laddha confirmed the ongoing gun battle during a press conference in Vijayawada, adding that details are still emerging.
The ADG said security forces initiated the operation based on specific intelligence inputs suggesting that Maoist cadres from Chhattisgarh and Telangana were attempting to infiltrate Andhra Pradesh. “An exchange of fire took place in ASR district on the morning of November 18 in which CPI (Maoist) Central Committee member Hidma and five others were neutralised,” he said.
In a major breakthrough, police arrested 50 Maoists across multiple districts on Tuesday—NTR, Krishna, Eluru, Kakinada and Konaseema—marking one of the largest single-day crackdowns in the state. Those arrested include three special zonal committee members, 23 platoon members, five divisional committee members and 19 area committee members. A substantial cache of arms and explosives was also recovered.
Laddha said the arrests were carried out with utmost caution to ensure civilian safety. “Probably for the first time in history, we could arrest such a large number of Maoists, including important cadres,” he noted, calling the operation a major success.
Senior police officials, including SPs, IGs and commissioners from the five districts, joined the ADG at the Command Control Centre in Vijayawada to brief the media on the developments. Combing operations continue in the area as security forces aim to neutralise remaining cadres still active in the region.
