Bhubaneswar, Aug 4 - Maoist rebels Tuesday shot dead a villager in Orissa's Rayagada district, police said.

A group of four-five rebels killed Gopi Lama at Gurukuda village, some 120 km from Rayagada, the district headquarters, and some 500 km from the state capital.

'The villagers have informed us about the incident. The details are awaited,' district police chief Ashish Kumar Singh told IANS.

Maoists are active in more than half of state's 30 districts.