RAIPUR: Security forces’ changed strategy is what delivered encouraging results against Maoists in one of the worst insurgency-hit districts of Dantewada in south Chhattisgarh.
Attired in a loincloth, some wearing shirts and T-shirts and carrying modern weapons in jute bags full of vegetables, the jawans rode a ramshackle pick-up van to take the war to the Reds into their own den.
The handpicked jawans belong to the specially-trained District Reserve Guards (DRG), who are local tribal recruits or surrendered local militia but part of the forces fighting Left-wing extremism in Bastar zone.
The DRG unit, under the direction of District Police Chief Abhishek Pallava, worked on tip-offs on Maoist meetings in remote villages and travelling in disguise, ostensibly to “collect levy from tendu leaf collectors and others,” they zeroed in on the Maoists.
“Our DRG men dressed like villagers managed to strike at a Maoist meeting, exchanging gunfire from close quarters, and barely a few hundred metres from the chosen site. Innovative strategy, such as these guarantee further success,” Pallava said.
“One senior Maoist leader carrying an award of `5 lakh was killed in the gunfight and two others arrested,” he said. “The DRG troopers made a unit of 18-20 men, mimicking small Maoist hit squads, which hit with speed and disappear. Being locals, they were familiar with the terrain,” he added.
He said, smaller, speedier action groups working with good intelligence can achieve better results while keeping the informers safe from harm. Coordinated action by small units is swift and there is no pressure on villagers for the forces can melt with locals-not being in uniform, he added.