Uike's death has broken backbone of Maoist activities in Odisha: DGP
Bhubaneswar (PTI): Ganesh Uike, 69, a battle-hardened Maoist leader, finally fell to the bullets of security personnel in Kandhamal district on Thursday, less than a year after taking charge of Odisha operations, officials said.
Uike, a central committee member of the outfit carrying a bounty of Rs 1.1 crore, was shot dead in a dense forest within Chakapad police station limits, bordering Ganjam district in Rambha forest range.
A senior officer associated with the operation said Uike, despite being accompanied by three of his associates, was caught off guard.
The biting cold in Kandhamal, with temperatures falling below three degrees Celsius in the jungle, likely aided security forces in neutralising the group, the officer said.
Uike took charge of Odisha operations in December 2024 after previously heading the Karnataka-Kerala-Tamil Nadu south regional bureau.
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He was promoted to the central committee in 2020 and had worked across Chhattisgarh up to November 2024, officials said.
Known by various names including Pakka Hanumantu, Rajesh Tiwari, Chamru, and Rupa, Uike was a native of Pullemala village under Chendur mandal in Telangana’s Nalgonda district.
In February, he reorganised the Niyamgiri local organisation squad to revive Maoist activities in the erstwhile areas of top naxal leader Sabyasachi Panda, currently serving a life sentence in Berhampur jail.
Uike mostly focused in Kalahandi - Rayagada - Kandhamal - Boudh – Nayagarh axis taking advantage of the difficult terrains and topography.
However, he died in the same forested and hilly terrain in an encounter with the security personnel of Odisha’s SOG, DVF and central forces like CRPF and BSF.
"Uike's death has broken the backbone of Maoist activities in Odisha," DGP Y B Khurania told reporters.
"The death of Uike is a body blow to the Maoists in the state because the outfit does not have any senior leader. Modem Balakrishna, who for some time looked after Odisha affairs for the outfit, was killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh's Gariyaband district on September 11," a senior officer said.
Active along the Odisha-Chhattisgarh-Maharashtra corridor for nearly a decade, Uike was involved in armed squad operations, cadre recruitment, and forest-based movements. Officials said his expertise in forest operations failed in the Kandhamal-Ganjam border area, leading to his neutralisation.
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18-year-old graphic designer arrested for theft; says he lost job due to AI
Indore (PTI): An 18-year-old graphic designer, who claimed to have lost his job due to AI, was arrested with his NEET-aspirant woman friend on Thursday for allegedly stealing jewelry worth Rs 16 lakh.
The teen duo told police that they were inspired by the 2005 film Bunti Aur Babli, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Shrikrishna Lalchandani.
They allegedly stole gold, silver, and diamond jewelry worth Rs 16.17 lakh from a shop in Rau police station area in the city on the night of December 22, the official told reporters.
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The entire booty was recovered from their possession after the arrest in Bhopal where they had fled.
Without disclosing the identities of the accused, DCP Lalchandani said, "Both are 18 years old. The young man is a graphic designer, while the woman is preparing for National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET). The two have known each other since childhood.
"During interrogation, the young man told us that he used to work part-time as a graphic designer at an IT company, but lost his job due to the company's adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technology and he was finding it difficult to make ends meet," the official added.
The accused, who come from economically weak background, claimed to have planned the theft after watching "Bunty Aur Babli," he said.
"The accused say they tried to sell the stolen jewelry, but the buyers, thinking they were children, wouldn't pay the right price. So they had decided to sell it after Christmas holidays," the DCP said.
