A shootout between security forces and Maoist rebels in a central forest killed at least four Maoist militants and a policeman, Indian police said Sunday.

The Maoists, who have waged an insurgency since 1967 that has killed tens of thousands of people, say they are fighting for the rural poor. Government forces stepped up operations last year to end the decades-long armed conflict. Some 287 insurgents were killed in 2024, according to government figures.