Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Vivekanand Sinha said that Maoist cadres opened fire which led to an encounter with the security forces when they were on a search and combing operation in the forests. 14 Maoists were killed and 16 weapons seized on Monday during a fierce encounter with security forces near a forest village between Gollappal and Konta in Sukma district in the tribal Bastar region of Chhattisgarh . Police said that Separate teams of the CRPF, the District Reserve Guards and the Special Task Force launched the operation following intelligence inputs about the presence of a large number of Maoists in the area. Senior police officials said that additional reinforcements have been sent to the remote forest area to recover the dead bodies of the Maoists but the exact number is still unknown. This time of the monsoon season, when navigation through the forests is difficult due to flooded rivers and thick vegetation in the tribal Bastar region the security forces upgraded their operation through the forests to get hold of the Maosists and seal their areas.