Final rites of CRPF jawan killed in Bijapur encounter carried out in Vizianagaram

The final rites of Routhu Jagadish, a soldier who was killed in the Bijapur Naxal attack, were held in Andhra Pradesh's Vizianagaram on Tuesday morning.

A huge procession, consisting of family members, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel and local residents, was carried out in the Gajularega area.

Vizianagaram MP B Chandrasekhar Rao and MLA K Veerabhadra Swamy also participated in the procession.

Jagadish was one of 22 security personnel who lost their lives in an encounter that broke out between the security forces and Naxals along the Sukma-Bijapur border in Chhattisgarh on Saturday after a party of jawans was ambushed near Jonnaguda village.

The 27-year-old CRPF jawan's body reached his hometown on Monday and was met with a rally of friends, family and local residents. They raised slogans like 'Jagadish Amar Rahe'.

Another jawan from Andhra Pradesh, Sakjamuri Muralikrishna from Gudipudi village, Guntur district, was also killed in the ambush.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy on Monday announced an ex gratia of Rs 30 lakh for each bereaved family.

An encounter broke out between security forces and Naxals along the Sukma-Bijapur border on Saturday after a party of jawans was ambushed by Maoists near Jonnaguda village around noon.

At least 22 security personnel lost their lives in the attack and at least 31 sustained injuries in the encounter, the Chhattisgarh Police said.

Director-General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Kuldeep Singh, who is in Chhattisgarh to monitor the situation following the attack, on Sunday said that there was absolutely no intelligence or operational failure in the operation.

( With inputs from ANI )