Military operations have intensified in recent weeks as the government has set a deadline of next year to defeat a decades-old Maoist insurgency.

Indian police have killed 31 suspected Maoist rebels in what is being described as the “biggest ever operation” against the long-running insurgency, which the government considers one of the country’s biggest security threats.

A top Maoist leader has been killed fighting with Indian security forces in the central state of Chhattisgarh. Nambala Keshava Rao, who is also known by several alias, including Basavaraju, was among 27 rebels killed on Wednesday, Indian Home Minister Amit Shah said. One police officer was also reported to have died in the fighting.