Naxals begging for peace: How 24k commandos cleared 'core' Maoist stronghold in Chhattisgarh's Koragutta Hills

Screenshot of a video showing the Tricolour flying atop Karegutta Hill

The Chhattisgarh government on Sunday claimed that a key part of the Koragutta Hills in Bijapur district, near the Telangana border, has been cleared of Maoist presence. This happened during a large anti-Naxal operation that has been going on for the past nine days.

More than 24,000 personnel of state and Central forces were involved directly and indirectly in the interstate operation. The security personnel successfully took control of the hilltop, which lies 5,000 feet above sea level, and raised the Indian national flag there.

Indian Security forces have captured the Naxal stronghold Karregutta Hills.Half of the Karregutta hills falls in the south-west part of Bijapur district in south Bastar of Chhattisgarh and the other half falls in Telangana. pic.twitter.com/35zKBQYTkc
Source Snipe (@SourceSnipe) April 30, 2025

According to officials, the area was a stronghold of top Maoist leaders from the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion No. 1, including Hidma, Deva, and Damodar. At one point, these leaders and their followers were surrounded as Chhattisgarh Police’s District Reserve Guard (DRG), Special Task Force (STF), and CRPF’s CoBRA battalion took control of the access routes from the Chhattisgarh side, cutting off their supplies.

The security personnel advanced slowly in the forested and hilly terrain, heavily mined with improvised explosive devices (IEDs), scanning the length and breadth of the area for Maoist hideouts and Naxal arms dumps.

Several Maoist hideouts, including a large natural cave, bunkers and arms dumps were documented in Karregutta hills by the security forces.

However, a senior officer said the Maoists managed to escape through the Telangana side of the hills, as the Telangana forces did not appear to be guarding those exit routes during the operation.

"This region was the bastion of top Naxal commanders like Hidma, Deva, Damodar, Azad and Sujata. Chhattisgarh police and CoBRA battalion have now reclaimed the hills on its side. Cornered, the Maoist leaders and PLGA cadres have escaped and found sanctuary in Telangana. The forces in Chhattisgarh will now set up security camps or forward operating bases in Koragutta hills and hold the area to prevent the return of Maoists or cadres of PLGA Battalion No. 1," an officer told TOI.

After three PLGA members were killed during the operation, the Maoist group CPI (Maoist) released a statement on April 25. In it, they appealed for a temporary ceasefire with security forces to make way for peace talks. The statement called for a time-bound ceasefire across seven states—Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh.

They also urged civil society, journalists, and various social groups to support their call and persuade both the central and state governments to agree to open dialogue for peace.