Seven Maoists were killed in an exchange of fire at Maredumilli in Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday, police said.
"In continuation with Tuesday's operation, seven Maoists have died until now, according to information received from the field," AP Intelligence ADG Mahesh Chandra Laddha said in a press conference.
He further said three women Maoists were among the dead even as the identification process is going on.
One person was identified as Meturi Jokha Rao alias Shankar, he said.
Shankar, a native of Srikakulam, was in-charge (ACM) for Andhra Odisha Border (AOB) and specialised in technical things, arms manufacturing, communication, the official said based on preliminary information.
Shankar, a native of Srikakulam, was in-charge (CCM) for Andhra Odisha Border (AOB) and had specialised in technical operations such as arms manufacturing and communication, the official said, based on preliminary information.
According to Laddha, Shankar had been in the Maoist movement for about 20 years and continuous security operations compelled him to move.
Further, Laddha noted that Shankar, a native of Srikakulam, would have probably come to the southern state to revive the movement.
According to Laddha, at least 50 Maoists have been arrested from Vijayawada city, and various places in Krishna, NTR and Kakinada districts. “All of them are from Chhattisgarh. They escaped the security forces and moved to various parts of Andhra Pradesh. We had intelligence inputs about their presence, but if we had acted on that information, Tuesday morning’s encounter in which Hidma was killed would probably not have happened. They would have been forewarned had we acted before,” he said.
“Our intelligence officers were keeping a watch over them. We used drones to conduct surveillance, and within two hours after the Hidma encounter, we took them into custody. A few weapons have been seized from some of them. Before taking them into custody, we used bullhorns to warn them and asked them to surrender. None of them fired upon us, although we were prepared for an exchange of fire,” he added.
Laddha said the Maoists wanted to regroup and move towards the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border. “That is the information we have now. We are checking their identities…some of them could be senior area commanders,” Laddha said.
The development comes a day after six Maoists, including Madvi Hidma, who heads the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion 1 of the Maoists, were killed in a gunfight with security personnel in Andhra Pradesh's Alluri Sitaramaraju district.
Chhattisgarh police described Hidma's death as the "final nail in the coffin" of the insurgency, who had masterminded several attacks over the last two decades.
Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai said the killing of Hidma, along with five other Naxalites, in a joint operation by security forces along the Chhattisgarh-Andhra Pradesh border marks a "decisive achievement" in the fight against Left Wing Extremism.
"It is a historic and decisive day for the security forces on the anti-Naxal front.
Hidma headed the Maoists' People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Battalion No. 1, the strongest military formation of the outfit in Dandakaranya, which spans parts of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Telangana, and Maharashtra, apart from Bastar, for several years, officials said.