NEW DELHI: Attributing the recent successes in operations against left wing extremists to forward operating bases deep inside Naxal dens, officials in the security set-up said that 125 such units were established by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in the past three years.
Giving year wise details, a senior official said the CRPF has set up 18 forward operating bases so far in 2024, while 31 such posts were established in 2023, 48 in 2022 and 28 in 2021.
These posts have given a decisive advantage to the security forces in fighting the Naxals, as more than 90 extremists were killed, over 125 arrested and 150 have surrendered so far this year in Chhattisgarh alone, the official said.
As per the official data put out by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), LWE-related violence has declined by 52 percent in the country and the number of deaths by 69 percent, from 6,035 to 1,868, in the period between 2014 and 2023 as compared to the period from 2004 to 2014.
After a recent detailed review of the security situation in the states affected by left wing extremism, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had directed the forces to proactively carry out operations against the Maoists.
The minister’s direction soon translated into the formation of a high-powered committee, which had the state directors general of police (DGPs), the directors general (DG) of the CRPF, Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Intelligence Bureau (IB) and other officers of the anti-Maoist grid as its members.
Another senior official in the MHA said the results of proactive action against the Naxals are now visible on the ground, as in one of the biggest ever counter offensives against Naxals in Chhattisgarh, the forces gunned down 29 Naxalites, including some senior cadre, in Kanker district last month.
According to the MHA data, the number of LWE incidents has gone down from 14,862 to 7,128 in 2014-23 as compared to 2004-14. The number of deaths of security personnel due to LWE has also declined by 72 percent, from 1,750 in 2004-14 to 485 in 2014-23, and the number of civilian deaths declined by 68 per cent, from 4,285 to 1,383.
In the last five years, more than 5,000 post offices were set up in 90 districts that have Naxal presence or where the extremists were present in the past. As many as 1,298 bank branches were opened and 1,348 ATMs made operational in the 30 most-affected districts, the official said.
