Encounter breaks out between Kerala Police's commando teams, Maoists in Wayanad

Kerala Police teams had launched a combing operation in the area based on intelligence inputs received from a Maoist sympathiser apprehended earlier in the day in neighbouring Kozhikode district.During the operation, the Maoists opened fire at the Special Operation Group SOG and the Thunderbolt Squad, both elite commando forces of the state police.

An encounter broke out between Kerala Police's specialised teams and Maoists here on Tuesday night, a police source said.

The exchange of fire took place in a forest area under the Thalappuzha police station limits. Kerala Police teams had launched a combing operation in the area based on intelligence inputs received from a Maoist sympathiser apprehended earlier in the day in neighbouring Kozhikode district.

During the operation, the Maoists opened fire at the Special Operation Group (SOG) and the Thunderbolt Squad, both elite commando forces of the state police. The forces retaliated, the source told PTI.

There is no immediate information on casualties, the source added.