Police claimed to have killed "five or six" naxalites, including a deputy commander, in an encounter in Gadchiroli district and recovered from their possession arms, ammunition and naxal literature.
In the second brazen attack in as many days, Naxals on Friday blew up an anti-landmine vehicle, killing 10 security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district. The anti-landmine vehicle of the security force was approaching a bridge near Gatan village when the Naxals triggered a powerful blast and opened indiscriminate fire on them, said the police.Seven Special Police Officers and three police jawans were killed when their vehicle was tossed in the air by the blast.
A Naxal couple which had decamped with weapons from a police station in Dhamtari district of Chhattisgarh was gunned down in a police encounter in the wee hours on Wednesday, a senior police officer said.
Vanvasi Chetna Asram founder Himanshu Kumar while reacting to the letter dashed by Chhattisgarh Governor ESL Naramsimhan to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday asking Union Home Minister P Chidambaram not to visit Naxal-hit areas in Raipur and Dantewada on January7, told rediff.com, "It means that the state government has something to hide."
The increase in the frequency of attacks by naxalites on the police and civilians in Vidarbha has law enforcement agencies worried.
In a notification, the Union Home Ministry said an eligible beneficiary desirous of receiving the benefit under the 'Central Scheme for Assistance to Civilian Victims/Family of Victims of Terrorist/Communal/LWE Violence and Cross Border Firing and Mine/IED Blasts on Indian Territory' is required to furnish proof of possession of Aadhaar number or undergo Aadhaar authentication.
The Maoists have already blown up as many as 16 telecom towers in different places of these districts, thereby disrupting the mobile telephone services.
Communication, dated February 17 to all state governments, said the CPI (Maoist) planned to capture attention once again
Identifying terrorism, naxalism and communalism as challenges to the nation, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said the "ferocity" of these "disturbing and disruptive" elements has to be understood and ways should be devised to defeat these.
The task force will make recommendations on policies, plans and programmes for the central and state governments.
As the Centre prepares to launch a massive operation against the Maoists, police in the Naxal-hit Andhra Pradesh have a reason to rejoice this year.
Assessment by security forces suggests the Naxals had reached Sukma in small batches from different states to carry out the attack, reports Gyan Varma
Condemning the Maoist attack in Chhattisgarh, BJP today expressed its "shock" and concern over frequent targeting of political activist by Naxals and called for an aggressive, unified and non-partisan strategy to fight the menace.
Lalgarh, once a nerve centre of Naxal insurgency in West Bengal, now represents a different place.
The ultras for the first time this season put up pamphlets, banners and flags on Thursday, appealing to people to observe Maoist week -- from July 28 to August 3.
With the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist) planning to create disturbances to mark its decade of formation this September, police is bracing up to counter any such move and make people aware about the "futility" of the rebel movements.
Karnataka government on Saturday announced a week-long ceasefire from Monday in anti-Naxal operations to facilitate surrender of Maoists, Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar said.
The government on Friday ruled out holding any talks with Naxalites but said a balanced approach will be adopted in close coordination with states to tackle the violence perpetrated by Maoists.
Toral Varia and photographer Reuben Verghese report on an emerging trend in the red bastions of Odisha's Keonjhar district: The rebels return home.
39-year-old Majhi, a prominent tribal leader, who represented Umerkote assembly constituency, had gone to Gona village to distribute land pattas when the incident took place, Director General of Police Manmohan Praharaj said.
"The air wing deployed for anti-naxal operations will ensure that at least one helicopter is essentially available for casualty evacuation duties and responding to SOS from injured troops will be their topmost priority," BSF Special Director General Arvind Ranjan said.
As many as 281 persons, both civilians and security force personnel, have died in the naxal-related incidents while in Jammu and Kashmir, 141 persons died in terrorist acts.
Senior Congress leader Mahendra Karma's personal security officer, who was critically injured in the deadly Naxal attack in Bastar, succumbed to his injuries at a hospital in Raipur on Saturday, taking the death toll in the tragedy to 28.
The decision to finance these districts for rapid improvement in schooling, health care and drinking water comes nine months after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee listed the drive in his Union Budget to ensure the poor and the tribals do not head to the Naxals for help.
A team of National Investigation Agency, probing the Naxal attack on Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh, on Tuesday visited the site where the ultras attacked the convoy returning from Parivartan rally.
Three policemen, including two personnel of Cobra battalion of Central Reserve Police Force were killed on Saturday in a naxal attack in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra.
With Naxals watching the highways, cash to Bastar banks comes via copter.
With heavy security deployment in hyper-sensitive areas of Bastar region ahead of polls, Naxalites are apparently trying to change their course of action and mobilising cadres to town areas to attack "soft targets" outside their core hold, intelligence sources said.
A sub-inspector of the Andhra Pradesh's counter-Maoist force was posthumously awarded the Ashok Chakra, the highest peacetime gallantry award of the country, as India celebrated its 65th Republic Day on Sunday.
The Kirandul-Vishakhapatnam passenger train derailed at around 0600 hours, 45 minutes after it left Kirandul railway station and was approaching Bhansi railway station, police officials told PTI.
