In the aftermath of the Dantewada ambush of 2010, where 76 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel lost their lives, the Indian government termed the Naxal-Maoist insurgency the country’s gravest internal security threat. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the time had warned of the danger that Maoist ideologues posed to India’s resource-rich heartlands.
Over a decade later, the picture has changed dramatically. Once deeply entrenched in states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, armed Maoist network has been severely weakened.
In 2024, Home Minister Amit Shah declared the movement on the verge of extinction, setting March 31, 2026, as the deadline for the complete elimination of armed Naxalism. As that date approached, India’s security forces had managed to neutralise numerous top leaders of the Communist Party of India (Maoist), effectively crippling the insurgency.
Shankar Rao
Shankar Rao was key figure in the CPI (Maoist), known for his expertise in improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and weapons production. A native of Srikakulam and a resident of Warangal, Rao had spent nearly two decades in the insurgency.
On April 16, 2024, he was killed in a fierce encounter with the Border Security Force (BSF), alongside 28 other militants. Rao carried a bounty of 25 lakh rupees on his head.
Nambala Keshava Rao
Perhaps the most remarkable event in the decimation of the Naxal leadership came on May 21, 2025, when Nambala Keshava Rao, also known as Basavaraju or Basava Raju, was killed in an encounter in the Abujhmarh forests of Narayanpur district, Chhattisgarh.
Rao was the General Secretary of the CPI (Maoist), and his elimination represented an unprecedented event in India’s history, the first time a serving general secretary of any Indian communist party was killed in a security operation. Along with 27 other cadres, Rao fell in a gunfight.
Madvi Hidma and Madakam Raje
On November 18, 2025, the forests of Maredumilli in Alluri Sitharama Raju district, Andhra Pradesh, witnessed another significant confrontation. Madvi Hidma, often described as a key operational commander of the Maoists, along with his wife Madakam Raje (alias Rajakka) and four other militants, were killed during a gunfight with security forces.
The operation began around 6 am after intelligence revealed Maoist movement near the tri-junction of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha. While the official account by police described it as a fierce exchange of fire, Maoist leadership and tribal activists contested the narrative, alleging that the leaders had been captured alive and later executed.
Meturi Jokha Rao (Tech Shankar) and Metturi Jog Rao
Meturi Jokha Rao, known by the alias Tech Shankar, was another central committee member who specialised in arms production and technical operations along the Andhra–Odisha border. A resident of Srikakulam, he played a critical role in managing weapons and communications for the Maoists. He was killed on November 19, 2025, alongside other cadres, including Sita (alias Jyothi) and Lokesh (alias Ganesh).
Metturi Jog Rao’s death, confirmed the following day, highlighted the systematic dismantling of the technical and operational leadership of the CPI (Maoist).
Kadarat Satyanarayan Reddy (Kosa)
Chhattisgarh continued to be the site of critical encounters throughout 2025. On September 22, 2025, Kadarat Satyanarayan Reddy, known as Kosa, a central committee member of the Maoists, was killed in Narayanpur district.
Kosa had long been involved in planning violent strikes and maintaining the organisation’s grip over parts of Bastar.
Sahdev Soren
Sahdev Soren had spent more than a decade evading the law. A central committee member of CPI (Maoist) and wanted in over 80 criminal cases, including the infamous 2007 Chilkhari massacre in Jharkhand that claimed 20 lives, Soren was finally neutralised in a joint operation by the CRPF’s CoBRA battalion and Jharkhand police.
Narasimha Chalam (Sudhakar)
Narasimha Chalam, alias Sudhakar, also known as Gautam, was a senior CPI (Maoist) central committee member with a three-decade-long involvement in the insurgency. Hailing from Chintapaludi village in Andhra Pradesh, Sudhakar had orchestrated Naxal operations across Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Telangana, earning a bounty of 1 crore rupees.
He was killed in Chhattisgarh in an encounter with security forces.
Chalpathi (Ramachandra Reddy Gari Pratap Reddy)
On January 21, 2025, intelligence about Chalpathi’s location near Kularighat reserve forest in Gariaband district, Chhattisgarh, triggered a well-coordinated operation. Five kilometers from the Odisha border, a fierce gunfight broke out between Chalpathi’s associates and security personnel. Chalpathi and thirteen other militants were killed.
The wave of surrenders: From Sonu to Devuji
By October 2025, the Maoist leadership began showing signs of collapse beyond violent encounters. Mallojula Venugopal Rao, alias Sonu, a senior Politburo member, laid down arms voluntarily. He was soon followed by Thippiri Tirupathi alias Devuji and central committee member Malla Raji Reddy.
Between October 2025 and February 2026, hundreds of cadres surrendered..
The numbers speak: CRPF and police operations
Data released by Press Information Bureau in 2025 paints picture of the scale of operations. That year alone, 317 Naxals including top leadership were neutralised in encounters, over 800 were arrested, nearly 2,000 surrendered. Between 2023 and 2025, at least 3,594 Maoist cadres surrendered, while more than 800 were killed in action.
2026: The final countdown
As the March 31, 2026 deadline approached, operations continued unabated. A Maoist commander was killed in a targeted encounter in the dense hills of Polampalli, Sukma district, Chhattisgarh.
Acting on intelligence inputs, the Sukma District Reserve Guard launched a cordon-and-search operation, eliminating the insurgent. This incident came just two days before the Home Ministry’s declared deadline. Earlier this year, on January 3, fourteen Naxals were neutralised in two separate operations across the Bastar region, comprising seven districts.
By early 2026, a total of at least 27 Maoists had been killed in Chhattisgarh alone.
From the deadly Dantewada attack in 2010 to the final operations in 2026, the story of India’s fight against Naxalism has been one of intelligence-driven strategy.
By March 31, 2026 deadline, India has dealt a decisive blow to the Naxal movement.