Cops knew of Maoists' meet in advance

YDERABAD: What paid dividends for the Greyhounds in the Dharmavaram encounter in which 17 naxals were killed was that they got wind of the Maoist plenary meeting in Darelli forests much in advance. "The weekly markets in Chintooru, Cherla and Kukunoor areas helped our spotters in establishing the movement of Maoists", the police officer said.

Attributing the massive success of the Khammam police in the operation to perfect planning and tactful jungle warfare, a district police official said they have been planning the ambush for over 5/6 months. "Our forces’ manoeuvrability and military strategy clinched the issue this time round", he said.

Ridiculing the rights activists’ posers as to how there was no casualty from the police side, the official said the police too had faced reverses whenever they were killed by Maoist-triggered landmines. "In fact, the Maoist cadre camping in the timber reserves of Darelli forest area were taken by surprise with Greyhounds sealing the forest routes along the Taliperu river course which separates the borders of AP and Chhattisgarh", he observed. He recalled that 16 cops were killed in an ambush by Maoists when a police team was on its way to Pamedu police station in November 2007.