Raipur, July 8 -- A top Maoist sniper who carried a reward of Rs.8 lakh on his head was killed in an encounter with security forces in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh, police officers aware of the matter said on Monday. Police identified him as Sodhi Kanna who served as the deputy commander of the second company of the first battalion of People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) - the armed unit of outlawed CPI (Maoist). Bijapur superintendent of police (SP) Jitender Kumar Yadav described the operation as a major success in the fight against left wing extremism. "Sodhi Kanna was the deputy commander of the second company of the PLGA's first battalion, which is headed by the notorious Maoist leader Madvi Hidma-currently the only active Central Committee Member (CCM) of the CPI (Maoist) in the region," he said. Kanna, who also functioned as a trained sniper, was known to be an expert marksman, police said. "The operation was launched on the basis of specific intelligence inputs indicating the presence of armed Maoist cadres, including members of the Telangana State Committee, the National Park Area Committee, and PLGA Battalion No 1 in the region," SP Yadav stated. Kanna's killing, he added, has dealt a significant blow to the Maoist outfit, particularly in terms of its sniper capabilities. "His elimination is a severe setback for the Maoists. He was a highly skilled sniper and a trusted operative in Hidma's battalion," Yadav noted....