Hyderabad, Telangana — Seven Maoists were killed in a fierce gunbattle with the Greyhounds, an elite anti-Naxal unit of the Telangana Police, in the dense Eturnagaram Chalpaka forest area, located along the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border, on Sunday. The encounter took place during a combing operation carried out by the police, following intelligence reports of Maoist activity in the region.
The gunfight, which lasted several hours, occurred when a contingent of Greyhounds personnel, engaged in a routine search operation, came under heavy fire from Maoist insurgents hiding in the forested terrain. In response, the Greyhounds quickly retaliated, neutralizing seven militants in the exchange of fire. A senior police official confirmed the deaths, adding that two AK-47 rifles were seized from the site of the encounter.
The deceased Maoists were identified as Kurusam Mangu alias Bhadru alias Papanna (35), Egolapu Mallaya alias Madhu (43), Mussaki Deval alias Karunakar (22), Mussaki Jamuna (23), Jaisingh (25), Kishore (22), and Kamesh (23). Among them, Kurusam Mangu was a key leader, holding the position of Secretary of the Telangana State Committee (Yellandu Narsampet) of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist), according to police sources.
Officials indicated that intelligence inputs had suggested the presence of senior Maoist leaders in the Chalpaka forest area. In the wake of the encounter, security forces have launched an extensive search operation to locate any remaining insurgents or materials left behind.
Maoist Activity and Rising Tensions
This recent operation comes amid a surge in Maoist activity in the region, particularly along the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border, which has seen several violent incidents in recent months. Just a week earlier, on November 22, Maoists killed two people, including a Panchayat Secretary, in the same district of Mulugu. In September, security forces had neutralized six Maoists in a separate encounter in the forest area near Raghunathapalem in Karakagudem Mandal.
In response to the rising threat, Telangana’s Director General of Police (DGP) Jitender had chaired a high-level security meeting last month with top officials, urging enhanced coordination between Telangana and Chhattisgarh police forces to counter the growing Maoist presence in the border areas. On November 11, the DGP also conducted a review meeting with police officials from Bhadradri Kothagudem, Mulugu, and Jayashankar Bhupalpally districts to strengthen anti-Naxal operations.
The Greyhounds Force
The Greyhounds, formed in 1989, are one of the most specialized anti-insurgency units in India. Initially created to tackle the Naxal menace in the Andhra Pradesh region, the force now operates extensively across both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, particularly in areas prone to Maoist activity. Greyhounds commandos are highly trained in counter-insurgency operations and are deployed in small, mobile units for combing operations in forested areas.
Known for their rigorous physical training, Greyhounds personnel are often under the age of 35, as they are expected to endure the harsh conditions of jungle warfare, including surviving on dry rations and operating stealthily to avoid detection. The commandos are also trained to carry out long-range, covert missions in some of the most challenging terrains along the Telangana-Chhattisgarh border.
The Greyhounds’ success in tackling Naxalism is widely recognized, with the force’s efficiency and effectiveness often hailed as a model for counter-insurgency operations in India.