Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Wednesday said, “We stand firmly with our soldiers in every situation. The security forces were out searching. Maoist terrorists ambushed them.”

He had reached 201 Cobra CRPF Camp located at Karanpur in Bastar district and paid tribute to the soldiers martyred in the Naxal encounter in Tekalgudem village (Jagargunda police station, Sukma police station) by placing a wreath on the mortal remains.

He met the soldiers of 201 Cobra Battalion and praised their courage and spirit and boosted the morale of the soldiers.

Tributes were paid to the soldiers martyred in the Naxalite encounter in Tekalgudem village, Deven C., Pawan Kumar and Lambadhar Singha.

Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Vijay Sharma, Forest Minister Kedar Kashyap, Chitrakot MLA Vinayak Goyal, Bastar MLA Lakheshwar Baghel, Jagdalpur Mayor Safira Sahu, former MLA Santosh Bafna, DGP Ashok Juneja, ADG Naxal Operation Vivekananda Sinha, Commissioner Shyam Dhawade, IG Sundarraj P. and other public representatives also paid tribute to the martyrs.

After paying tribute to the martyrs, their mortal remains were sent to their home village. These include mortal remains of martyred soldier Deven C. of 201 Cobra CRPF battalion, village Motur, district Vellore, Tamil Nadu, mortal remains of martyr Pawan Kumar, village Kupawali, district Bhind, Madhya Pradesh and martyred soldier Lambadhar Singha of 150th battalion, village Kakragaon, district Chintang, Assam.

Expressing condolences to the families of the martyrs, the Chief Minister said that the Maoist terrorists have become distraught due to the continuous advance of the force and setting up of camps even in inaccessible areas. The soldiers bravely deter them from a major 

He said that the fight against Naxalites has intensified in the state. Security forces are taking effective action to provide protection to the common citizens from Maoist terrorism and to ensure that the benefits of the schemes reach the people. Our soldiers are facing the Naxalite challenge bravely.