According to officers, the operation began late on Tuesday after intelligence inputs indicated the presence of Company No 10 cadres and other Maoist members from Chhattisgarh in the border forests, allegedly planning violent activities

Among those neutralised was Prabhakar, the in-charge of the Gadchiroli Division Committee, West Sub Zonal Bureau, and Company No. 10 of the CPI (Maoist). He hailed from Kamareddy, Telangana, and carried a reward of Rs 25 lakh on his head, an official statement said