Four Naxalites killed in encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur
Bijapur (PTI): Security forces on Saturday gunned down four Naxalites, including senior cadre Dilip Vedja, in an encounter in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, police said.
The gunfight broke out in the morning in the forested hills of the district’s northwest region, where a joint team of security forces was out on an anti-Naxal operation, Bijapur Superintendent of Police Jitendra Yadav said.
He said that personnel belonging to the Special Task Force and District Reserve Guard, both state police units, and CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action) -- an elite unit of CRPF -- were involved in the operation, which was launched based on inputs about the presence of Vedja, a divisional committee member, in the area.
“During the search, the bodies of two Maoists were recovered from the encounter site by noon. Subsequently, bodies of two more Maoist cadres, including a woman, were recovered in the evening,” Yadav said.
Weapons, including AK-47 rifle and .303 rifle, have also been recovered from the spot, he said, adding that a search operation is underway.
One of the neutralised Naxalites has been identified as Dilip Vedja, who was active in the national park area committee of Maoists and had been involved in several attacks, the official said.
Preliminary information suggests the three other killed cadres belonged to the same area committee, though their identity was yet to be ascertained, he added.
On January 3, as many as 14 Naxalites were gunned down in two encounters in the Bastar region, comprising seven districts, including Bijapur.
A total of 285 Naxalites were killed in encounters with security forces in Chhattisgarh last year.
The Centre has set the deadline of March 31, 2026, to eradicate Left-Wing Extremism in the country.
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Mumbai-Pune Expressway connecting link now fully operational
Mumbai (PTI): The Mumbai-bound carriageway of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway connecting link was opened to vehicular traffic on Saturday noon after a delay caused by the dismantling of inauguration infrastructure and cleaning work, a day after the Pune section became operational.
The 13.3 km-long "missing link", which bypasses a section of the Bhor Ghat stretch of the expressway and cuts travel time between Mumbai and Pune by 25 to 30 minutes, was inaugurated a day earlier by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in the presence of Deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar.
The Pune-bound carriageway of the corridor was opened to traffic immediately; however, the Mumbai-bound section remained closed to traffic for several hours after the inauguration.
An official of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation told PTI on Saturday that the opening of the Mumbai-bound carriageway was delayed mainly due to the dismantling of the inauguration infrastructure and cleaning work.
The removal of the stage and other decorations was completed in the morning. The work to load and transport the material slightly delayed the opening of the carriageway.
Vehicular movement on the carriageway began after all the remaining material was cleared and road cleaning was completed, the official added.
The expressway control room said that despite significant vehicular movement, the access-controlled highway has not witnessed any major traffic snarls since Friday evening, after the Pune-bound carriageway of the missing link was opened to traffic.
The Missing Link project connects Khopoli (in Raigad) on the Mumbai side to Kusgaon near Lonavala in Pune district and is expected to make the expressway fully access-controlled, easing congestion in the ghat section.
Developed by the MSRDC and dubbed an "engineering marvel", the project includes two tunnels, two viaducts and a cable-stayed bridge over Tiger Valley. It bypasses the steep, accident-prone ghat section, where frequent traffic snarls are reported during weekends and on public holidays.
