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The Hindu
24-07-2025
- The Hindu
66 Maoists surrender in five Bastar districts in Chhattisgarh
As many as 66 Maoist cadres, carrying a combined bounty of ₹2.54 crore, surrendered in five districts of Chhattisgarh's Bastar division on Thursday (July 24, 2025). A bulk of them, 25, surrendered in Bijapur while 15 surrendered in Dantewada, said Bastar Inspector General of Police P. Sundarraj. While 13 surrendered in Kanker district, eight and five Maoists laid down arms in Narayanpur and Sukma districts respectively. The surrendered cadres include one sub-zonal committee member or SZCM carrying a reward of ₹25 lakh and four divisional committee members who are considered relatively higher up in the Maoists military formation. Over the past 18 months, 1,570 Maoists have surrendered in the Bastar division, the police added. 'With the establishment of new security camps in the interior regions, and improved access to roads, transport, drinking water, electricity, and other public welfare schemes, development is now reaching the remotest villages. The growing trust between local communities and security forces — nurtured through community policing and awareness efforts — has significantly contributed to this wave of surrenders,' said Mr. Sundarraj. ₹50,000 given as initial help Each surrendered member was provided a cheque for ₹50,000 as an initial incentive to support their reintegration into society. Further benefits under the government's surrender and rehabilitation policy are being processed, the IG added. Speaking to journalists in Bijapur, one of the surrendered Maoists said that continuous security operations by the forces in the hilly terrains had also shrunk the area of influence where they lived in relative safety earlier. Mr. Sundarraj said appeals to Maoist cadres to give up violence and return to the mainstream were showing encouraging results. 'The surrender of 66 cadres, including a State-level committee member, across five districts in a single day is a strong indication that the Naxal outfit is approaching its end,' he said.
The Hindu
18-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Six Maoists killed in encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh's Narayanpur
Six Maoists were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Narayanpur district of Chhattisgarh on Friday (July 18, 2025). A gunfight broke out in the afternoon in the forest of the Abujhmad region when joint teams of security forces were out on an anti-Maoist operation following inputs about the presence of ultras, State Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) P. Sundarraj said. Operation underway 'Multiple exchanges of fire between the security forces and Maoists occurred since the afternoon. So far, the bodies of six Maoists have been recovered from the encounter site along with AK-47/SLR rifles, other weapons, explosive material and daily use items,' he said. The operation is still underway, the officer added. Hailing security forces, Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the guidance of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, his government has been marching ahead firmly towards fulfilling the resolve of making the country completely Maoist-free by March 31, 2026. 'In a major operation by security forces, six Naxalites have been neutralised so far in Abujhmad of Narayanpur district. I congratulate all the brave jawans of the security forces involved in the operation and salute their indomitable courage,' he said in a statement. 'The valour of the jawans has further strengthened our resolve of 'Naxal Mukt Chhattisgarh'. Under the leadership of PM Modi ji and the guidance of Union Home Minister Amit Shah ji, we are moving forward firmly towards the accomplishment of the resolve of making the country completely Maoist-free by March 31, 2026,' the Chief Minister added. With the latest action, 221 Maoists have been killed in separate encounters in Chhattisgarh so far this year. Of them, 204 were eliminated in the Bastar division, which includes districts of Bijapur, Bastar, Kanker, Konadagaon, Narayanpur, Sukma, and Dantewada. Notably, anti-Maoist operations have intensified in Chhattisgarh since the BJP was elected to power in the 2023 Assembly polls. More than 420 Maoist cadres, including senior functionaries, have been gunned down by security forces in separate encounters during this period.
The Hindu
16-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
CPI (Maoist) acknowledge losing 357 cadres in encounters with security forces, says Bastar IG
: The banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) has acknowledged in a recent letter released by its central committee that it has lost 357 members in various encounters with security forces across the country over the past year, said Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) P. Sundarraj on Wednesday (July 16, 2025). Mr. Sundarraj said the admission highlighted 'the severe setbacks suffered by the outfit, especially in core conflict zones'. Stating that these numbers were disclosed in a 24-page booklet released by the CPI (Maoist), Mr. Sundarraj said this list of Maoist casualties included four Central Committee (CC) members and 15 State Committee-level members, pointing to the loss of senior leadership and operational command within the outfit. Looming deadline With Union Home Minister Amit Shah setting a deadline of March 31, 2026 for the elimination of Maoism from the country, the forces are carrying out continuous anti-Naxal operations in Bastar. Recent successes in Chhattisgarh include the killing of general secretary Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju (70) who was neutralised by security forces in Narayanpur on May 21 and in a departure from the previous years, operations are continuing in monsoon this year. 'Significantly, the Dandakaranya region, which spans parts of Bastar Range districts and Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra, has been identified as the area of maximum damage, with 281 Maoists neutralised in the past one year alone,' the IG said. Out of the 357 deceased, 136 were women cadres. 'As per the vision of the Government of India and the Government of Chhattisgarh, the security forces are adopting a pro-people and development-centric approach. This strategy, complemented by intelligence-based operations, has led to remarkable operational successes in recent times and is helping create a conducive environment for lasting peace in the region,' Mr. Sundarraj said.
The Hindu
23-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Among slain Maoists in Chhattisgarh since 2024, one-third were women, show data
More than one-third of alleged Maoist cadres killed since 2024 in security operations with police and other security forces in Chhattisgarh were women, data show. There has been a sharp increase in the percentage of women Maoist cadres being killed in security operations in the years 2024 and 2025, compared to the previous years, coinciding with increase in the number of operations amid the Ministry of Home Affairs' (MHA's) call to end Maoism by March 2026. In the year 2024, the number of Maoists killed in Chhattisgarh stood at 217, out of which 74 were women, while till June 20 this year, out of 195 Maoists killed, 82 were women. In the years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023, the number of Maoists killed were 65, 40, 51, 30 and 20 respectively, out of which the number of women killed in the respective years stood at 17, 7, 13, 9 and 5. 'Bal Dastas' According to the MHA, Maoists have formed 'Bal Dastas' comprising young children in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. 'The idea is to brainwash and indoctrinate young children to Maoist ideology. Most parents do not want to part with their children. But faced with coercion and threats, many poor Adivasi parents prefer to part with the girlchild. This inhuman practice by Maoists is the reason behind large number of young girls/women being present among the Maoist cadres,' the MHA said on its website. Also read | Is this the endgame for the Maoists? The Ministry added that women were also pushed to the forefront of engagements with the security forces. 'In spite of the Maoists professing disapproval of 'patriarchy', the number of women in top echelons of their leadership like the PB [Polit Bureau] and CC [central committee] are negligible,' the MHA said. The Ministry data show that since 2019, 725 civilians have been killed 'by Left Wing Extremism [LWE]' and during the same period there have been 263 incidents of attack on 'economic infrastructure' in LWE-affected States. 'The Maoists wish to keep the population in their strongholds cut-off from the mainstream milieu. Schools are attacked because education promotes a spirit of enquiry among the local population and equips children with skills for alternative sources of livelihood. These developments are looked upon by the Maoists as potential threats to their very existence and their outdated ideology,' the Ministry said. P. Sundarraj, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range), said that in the earlier years, women and young girls — particularly from the tribal and rural areas of the Bastar region — were often coerced or misled into joining Maoist organisations. 'However, once inducted, these women cadres were largely used as foot soldiers and human shields by the Maoist leadership. Over time, they were subjected to various forms of exploitation, neglect, and physical and emotional hardship. We remain firmly committed to addressing this issue with both sensitivity and determination. Our priority continues to be the promotion of voluntary surrender through humane, gender-sensitive rehabilitation policies that offer access to education, employment, healthcare, and social reintegration,' the IG said.
The Hindu
31-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Security forces engage in encounter with Maoists in Jharkhand's Jhariakela
The security forces engaged in an encounter with members of the banned Maoist organisation CPI (Maoist) at around 12 p.m. on May 30. The encounter occurred in the hilly/forest areas of Vangram Tirilposi under Jhariakela Police Station in Jharkhand, a press release said. During the encounter, seeing the security forces gaining an upper hand, the Maoists fled from the incident spot by taking advantage of the forests and mountains. Explosives and other daily-use items were recovered and seized by the security forces during the search operation. Recently, the Indian forces conducted a major anti-Maoist operation in Chhattisgarh's Narayanpur, eliminating 27 Maoists, which included top commander Basavaraju. Basavaraju, the general secretary of CPI (Maoist), has been involved in Maoist activities for the past 40-45 years and has been involved in more than 200 Maoist activities. Meanwhile, Maoist activity in Bastar and many regions of India has 'reduced significantly' as a result of carrying out operations against the banned and 'illegal' CPI-M outfit, a police official said on Wednesday (May 28, 2025). Inspector General (IG) of police, Bastar, P. Sundarraj told ANI, 'As a result of carrying out operations against the banned and illegal CPI-M outfit, Maoist activity in Bastar and many regions of India has reduced significantly... 4 districts of Bastar sub-division, Bijapur, Sukma, Narayanpur, and Kanker were identified as the most affected LWE districts... 6 districts of Chhattisgarh, including Bastar, Dhamtari, and Rajnandgaon, will be specially monitored by us for any kind of resurgence'. The IG stated that most of the districts in Chhattisgarh are seeing a drop in Maoist activity. 'In the country, only 18 districts are Maoist-affected, and 28 districts are included in the list of districts of maximum thrust... District of maximum thrust means that Maoist activity in the district has reduced to a great extent, but strict observations are still required... Most of the districts in Chhattisgarh are seeing a drop in maoist activity...,' he said.
