Andhra Pradesh Set to Be Naxal-Free by March: DGP

Director General of Police Harish Kumar Gupta on Thursday said Andhra Pradesh is poised to be declared free of Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) by March next year.

The DGP visited Rampachodavaram to review Operation Sambhav, a coordinated effort to flush out Maoists who had reportedly moved from South Bastar to the Maredumilli agency area with the aim of reviving Naxal activities.

“We have already appealed to Maoists attempting to regain a foothold in Andhra Pradesh to surrender. Those who continue to resist will face stringent action and will be apprehended or neutralised,” Mr Gupta told reporters in Alluri Sitarama Raju district.

Recalling the June Kintakuru encounter, in which three Maoists were killed, Mr Gupta said the police had since been urging the ultras to lay down arms. “The Centre has set March 2026 as the deadline to declare Andhra Pradesh LWE-free. All security forces in the state are fully focused on achieving this goal,” he added.

The Maredumilli encounter in June had left three Maoists dead, including top leader Gajarla Ravi alias Uday, a CPI (Maoist) central committee member and secretary of the Andhra Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee (AOBSZC), and Raavi Venkata Chaitanya alias Aruna.

“At least 13 Maoists, including the most wanted Madvi Hidma, were eliminated in two encounters during Operation Sambhav. Andhra Pradesh will not tolerate any form of violence,” Mr Gupta affirmed.

Responding to reports about the alleged arrest of CPI (Maoist) general secretary Thippiri Tirupathi alias Devuji, the DGP clarified that he was not in police custody.

Additional DGP (Intelligence) Mahesh Chandra Laddha presented a briefing on Operation Sambhav and displayed a range of weapons recovered from encounter sites. Alluri Sitarama Raju SP Amit Bardar was also present at the review meeting.