In a series of attacks, Maoists gunned down one person and blew up two government school buildings in Orissa's Malkangiri district early Sunday, the police said.
A deputy commandant of the Central Reserve Police Force and two constables were killed in a blast triggered by suspected Maoists in Orissa's Malkangiri district on Friday. The explosion took place when a CRPF convoy was moving towards Laxmipur from Madhuban-89, CRPF sources said.The CRPF officer killed in the blast has been identified as Bhupinder Singh.
The blast took place at MV-126 under Kalimela police station area, about 50 km from Malkangiri, when jawans of Orissa's Special Operation Group and police were travelling in a van to MPV-41, Director General of Police Gopal Chandra Nanda said.
The ultras had planned to trigger explosions at the 360 MW Balimela hydel power plant, one of the major hydel projects in Orissa.
The Odisha government stepped up relief and restoration activities as cyclone Hudhud passed to neighbouring Chhattisgarh on Monday after claiming three lives, damaging about 50,000 thatched houses, electrical infrastructure and roads in four districts.
Maoists shot dead two persons in Odisha's Malkangiri district suspecting them to be police informers even as a bandh was being observed by the ultras on Wednesday demanding withdrawal of security forces and halt to anti-naxal operations.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demanded special category status for his state as well as other assistance from the Centre but remained evasive on allying with National Democratic Alliance.
Maoists have shot dead two persons, including a village panchayat ward member, two days after abducting them in Odisha's Malkangiri district, police said on Saturday.
With 24 children dying of a mysterious disease during last two months in Odisha's Malkangiri district, the government has launched a drive to create health awareness and conduct medical examination in the tribal-dominated district.
The enhanced allowance will be applicable to all paramilitary personnel deployed in Jammu and Kashmir and Naxal-hit areas.
Hardcore Maoist Sriramula Srinivas alias Sudarshan, wanted in connection with several cases including the killing of former Andhra Home Minister A Madhava Reddy and carrying a reward of Rs 20 lakh on him, was arrested in Khammam district, police said on Sunday.
2 senior commandos of Greyhounds were injured in the encounter that occurred during a routine combing operation.
A tribal farmer was shot dead by Maoists, who suspected him of being a police informer, in Odisha's Malkangiri district on Monday night, said the police. Nearly 15 Maoists reached the house of farmer and small time contractor Bhima Sisha, 35, of Sishaput under Mudulipada police station in the Maoist-prone district on Monday night.
Armed Maoists killed a contractor by slitting his throat in Odisha's Malkangiri district on Friday, apparently protesting the work undertaken by him in the backward region.
Barely three days after the killing of a former Naib Sarpanch in Malkangiri district, armed Maoists killed the son of a ruling Biju Janata Dal leader and block chairman in Bolangir district early on Wednesday, police said.
They live atop the Bonda hills in Odisha's Malkangiri district, segregated from the mainstream and have rarely stepped out of their environs. So an invitation to attend this year's Republic Day parade in the national capital was beyond their dreams.
Four officers of the Border Security Force, including a Commanding Officer, were on Friday killed in an IED blast by suspected Maoists in Malkangiri district of Odisha. The BSF squad was targeted at around 1 pm in the Janbai area of the district, under Chitragonda police station area, 465 kms from Bhubaneswar. Odisha's jungles are a hotbed for Naxal activities as it touches the borders of two other states -- Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh -- making it a corridor for Maoists.
On February 16 last year, while serving as the collector of Malkangiri district of Odisha, R Vineel Krishna was abducted by Naxals. He was released nine days later. The IAS officer recounts his experience
Uncertainty prevailed over the fate of abducted Malkangiri District Collector R V Krishna following fresh demands made by Maoists, which were not acceptable, according to the Naxal-appointed mediators.The hostage crisis got complicated on Wednesday night after Maoists demanded that five other key activists should be freed immediately, apart from top leader Ganti Prasadam. Krishna was abducted by the left-wing ultras on February 16.
Maoist-chosen mediators discussed certain key demands of the rebels with hardcore Naxal leader Ganti Prasadam in Bhubaneswar on Monday, as negotiations for the release of the abducted Malkangiri district collector and a junior engineer reached a crucial stage.
With Maoists extending the deadline for Orissa government to meet their demands, efforts for the release of Malkangiri District Collector R V Krishna and a junior engineer through negotiations gained pace on Saturday. As Krishna and junior engineer Pabitra Mohan Majhi spent the fourth day in captivity, the two mediators handpicked by Maoists are expected to arrive in Bhubaneswar shortly in order to speed up the process of negotiations.
Against the backdrop of abduction of the collector of Maoist-hit Malkangiri, Home Minister P Chidambaram interacted with collectors of nearly 60 Naxal-affected districts and asked them to contact him if they face any problem in executing development plans.
The Orissa assembly witnessed pandemonium scenes for the second day on Friday over the abduction of Malkangiri District Collector R V Krishna with the opposition and treasury bench members virtually clashing in the Speaker's podium. The uproar erupted as soon as the House assembled for the day for question hour.
Maoist-chosen mediators assured Orissa government the hostage duo would not be harmed and that rebels would refrain from violence as long as negotiations are underway after they opened talks for release of 30-year-old IAS officer and Malkangiri district Collector R V Krishna and junior engineer Pabitra Majhi.
A day after the Orissa government halted anti-Maoist operations to facilitate the early release of abducted Malkangiri Collector R V Krishna and an engineer, the rebels snapped the main road link with the district by felling trees on vast stretches. The main road connecting Maoist-hit Malkangiri district with other parts of Orissa was blocked by felling a large number of trees in mountainous and forested Gobindpalli Ghati area.
Making an appeal for early release of abducted Malkangiri District Collector R V Krishna, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday said the government was evaluating all options and monitoring the situation.
Abducted junior engineer Pabitra Majhi was freed on Wednesday by Maoists in Orissa after a seven day ordeal but release of Malkangiri district collector R V Krishna was clouded in uncertainty with the rebels setting a new condition for his release.
The Orissa high court on Wednesday granted bail to top Maoist leader Ganti Prasadam, whose release is among the conditions set by the Naxals for the safe return of abducted Malkangiri District Collector R V Krishna. The court granted him bail on a bond of Rs 20,000 with two sureties.
Seven days after being abducted by the Maoists, junior engineer Pabitra Majhi was freed in a remote area of Malkangiri district on Wednesday even as there was no clear information on the whereabouts of District Collector R V Krishna.
Conceding eight of the 14 demands of the Maoists on the second day of talks with the rebel-chosen mediators, the Orissa government said it was confident of securing early release of abducted Malkangiri Collector R V Krishna and a junior engineer.
Maoists disrupted several communication links in Orissa on Monday by torching government buses and triggering landmine blasts to destroy mobile towers, besides damaging a forest beat house, prior to their 12-hour shutdown in the state's southern districts.As a result of their disruptive activities, the movement of buses and telephone communication were affected in Gajapati, Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada and Ganjam districts.
Five hardcore Maoists, whose release was sought for release of the abducted Malkangiri district collector and an engineer, on Monday moved the Orissa high court for bail after their plea for the same had been rejected by a lower court.
A court on Saturday rejected the bail plea of four senior Maoist leaders and their associates whose release was demanded by Naxal abductors of Malkangiri District Collector RV Krishna and a junior engineer. The plea for similar relief for another person, whose freedom was also demanded by Maoists, was posted for hearing on Monday.
A senior official of Orissa's Maoist-hit Malkangiri district on Wednesday went missing and was suspected to have been abducted by Naxalites when he was going to attend a camp for local development in a remote area, officials said in Bhubaneswar.
Ten security personnel were killed and as many injured in a landmine explosion triggered by Maoists in Orissa's Koraput district on Sunday, the police said.
Rail and road services were disrupted in some parts of Orissa as a two-day Bharat Bandh called by the Maoists in protest against the death of a top Naxal leader began on Wednesday.
The Maoist attack near Dantewada in Chhattisgarh is the fifth major strike by Naxals in the country this year.
As cyclone Hudhud weakened and moved to Chhattisgarh, Odisha government on Monday braced for relief and rehabilitation in the affected southern districts where its damaged houses and uprooted trees even as heavy rainfall was expected to lash these areas.
"The boat has been traced deep inside the Balimela reservoir in Malkangiri district," said deputy inspector general, South-Western range, Sanjeev Panda, adding that the body of two missing commandoes has been extracted from the waters.
The Orissa government on Tuesday said that it would take the help of para-military forces like the Central Reserve Police Force to face the challenge. "We will initiate action through para-military force and the local police to stop children from joining Maoists," Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said. The banned CPI-Maoist had targeted poor children and school dropouts to expand their base in the area.
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