At least seven jawans have been killed and 13 others have been injured after Naxalites blew up a vehicle of the Central Reserve Police Force vehicle in a landmine attack in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday.
It is necessary to make incremental progress, state by state, rather than aiming for an illusory knock-out punch against the Maoists, write Dr Shanthie Mariet D'Souza and Dr Bibhu Prasad Routray.
While security personnel and equipment are important, it is the mindset that is the pivotal tipping factor in the battle against the Maoists, writes Vivek Gumaste.
Calling his resignation episode a closed chapter, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday said he decided to quit because the Central Reserve Police Force came under his charge but that does not mean state governments have no role in tackling the Maoists. "The resignation was indeed tendered. The prime minister has rejected it. The matter is a closed chapter," he told reporters, declining to talk further on the issue.
Give the adivasis honour and dignity and the pool of discontent in which the Maoists swim will dry up, writes Nitin Desai
'A demonstration of the force by the State will wean away a large portion of sympathisers. The hardcore ideologically motivated cadres are not likely to be affected by this, but it will ease the path of the impending operations by lowering the morale of the Naxal rank and file and raising that of the police forces as well as common people.'
The CRPF and local police on anti-Naxal operations perform a thankless job but a few basic counter-insurgency measures could have prevented the deadly Dantewada attack, writes B Raman.
'The Naxals started firing indiscriminately.' 'The whole jungle echoed with the sound of bullets.' 'The only thing I heard from that side was 'Chhodna kisi ko nahi (don't let anyone escape)'.'
Dantewada recorded lowest turnout with 49 per cent voting.
'Maoists are enraged that the media is reporting the truth.' 'They want to physically isolate the media and psychologically isolate the villagers who have found the confidence to speak to the press about the real situation.' 'Like terrorism ended in Punjab, Naxalism will end in Chhattisgarh,' the AIIMS doctor-turned IPS officer and SP of Dantewada tells Rediff.com's Archana Masih.
In a brazen daytime attack, Naxals on Tuesday ambushed a security team killing 15 personnel including 11 of the Central Reserve Police Force and also a civilian in a chilling reminder of the 2010 massacre of 76 securitymen in the same area in the worst-hit Sukma district of Chhattisgarh.
Two Naxals were also gunned down in these face-offs.
More than two lakh paramilitary personnel, thousands of vehicles and nearly a dozen helicopters will be deployed across the country to ensure smooth and violence-free elections beginning April 7.
BharatShakti.in Founder Nitin A Gokhale pays homage to Mr E N Rammohan and Colonel M B Ravindranath, two genuine Indian heroes who sadly passed into the ages on Sunday
Under the provision of Section 92 of the Jammu and Kashmir Constitution, governor's rule is imposed for six months.
The Pampore attack 'has the stamp of LeT written all over it.'
'They are exactly like the so-called fidayeen of the 1999-2003 phase, when J&K witnessed a surge in suicide attacks on various important garrisons,' says Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd), who served as the General Officer Commanding 15 Corps in Kashmir.
'India is my country and we will raise our voice against anybody who harms the interests of Adivasis, be it the state government or the Maoists.'
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