Odisha’s Director General of Police (DGP), Yogesh Bahadur Khurania, confirmed on Thursday that security forces are on track to meet the Union Home Ministry’s March 31, 2026, deadline to eradicate Naxalism from India.
DGP Khurania reaffirmed the full commitment of the Odisha Police to this mission, highlighting a series of high-impact successes in the ongoing operation against Naxal groups over the past several days.
He noted that the state’s security apparatus is working tirelessly to ensure the total elimination of Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) within the stipulated timeframe.
“The Union Home Minister has given a deadline of March 2026 to all security forces to bring Naxalism to an end. Odisha police is dedicated to working towards that. Over the last 3-4 days, Odisha police have achieved great success,” Khurania said.
The momentum began on December 22, when 22 Naxals surrendered with their weapons in Malkangiri district, marking a significant victory for the state’s surrender and rehabilitation policy. This was followed by an exchange of fire in Kandhamal on December 24, where SOG units neutralized two Naxals and recovered a large cache of ammunition.
“On 22 December, 22 Naxals surrendered in the Malkangiri district, along with their weapons. On 24 December, in Kandmal, there was an exchange of fire between SOG and Naxals, in which two Naxals were neutralised. Large quantities of ammunition were recovered. This morning, in a big operation at the border of Kandmal and Ganjam, there was an exchange of fire at multiple places in which 4 Naxals have been neutralised,” the DGP said.
The operation reached a crescendo on Thursday morning during a large-scale joint mission at the border of Kandhamal and Ganjam districts. In a major breakthrough, four Naxals were neutralized, including Ganesh Uike, the head of the banned outfit’s Odisha command and a prominent member of their Central Committee.
“Head of Odisha’s command and a member of the central committee, Ganesh Uikey, has been neutralised. He had a bounty of Rs 1.1 crore on him. Some weapons have also been recovered, and the operation is still continuing…” an official added.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah hailed the neutralisation of the six Naxalites as a “significant milestone” toward a Naxal-free Bharat.
In a post on X, he emphasized that this success brings Odisha to the threshold of being completely free from the menace of Naxalism.
“A significant milestone towards Naxal-free Bharat. In a major operation in Kandhamal, Odisha, six Naxalites, including Central Committee Member Ganesh Uike, have been neutralised so far,” Shah said.
He added that with this success, Odisha stands at the threshold of eliminating Naxalism entirely. Reiterating the Centre’s resolve, the Union Home Minister said the government is determined to eradicate Naxalism from the country. “We are resolved to eliminate Naxalism before March 31, 2026,” Shah said.
Shah termed the killing of six Naxalites, including Central Committee Member Ganesh Uike, another major breakthrough in making Odisha completely free from Naxalism.
The elimination of Uike is seen as a turning point, as he was the architect of Maoist operations in the region. The joint operation—comprising the Odisha SOG, CRPF, and BSF—successfully dismantled a key cell of the insurgency that had long exploited the difficult terrain of the Kandhamal-Ganjam axis.
