No more ‘liberated zones’ for Maoists

The recent exchange of fire (EoF) between the elite C-60 forces of Maharashtra Police and the Maoists in Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra killing 34 red rebels is being dubbed as a huge success for the security forces. It is being compared to another EoF that took place between the the Greyhounds, the elite anti-naxal unit of Andhra Pradesh and the Maoists on October 24, 2016, in Ramaguda (also known as Ramgarh), in the Cut-Off area of Andhra-Odisha Border (AOB), in which around 30 Maoists were killed.

Primarily, both the EoF are being dubbed as bad losses for the CPI (Maoists). For security forces, it was a win-win situation as both the encounters took place in the Maoist strongholds and there was no losses on the side of security forces, while the hit was huge on the other side, said a senior intelligence officer from A.P., who is engaged in anti-Maoist operations.

Both Kasanur in Bhamragad division of Gadchiroli district and Ramaguda along the AOB are the areas that fall under the so called ‘liberated zone’ where the Maoist rule the roost. But, the two exchanges of fire appear to have changed the equations, demystifying the myth that the liberated zones are impregnable .

This also sends a clear message that there are no safe zones for the left-wing extremists and specialised forces can reach them. The forces now have the edge in technology, fire-power and training, said the DIG of Visakhapatnam (Range) Ch. Srikanth.

Precision hits

Going by the ground reports of both the exchanges of fire, the operations were carried out along the hill slopes in thick forests, with water bodies on one side. In Gadchiroli, it was the mighty Indravati River and for Ramaguda, it was the Balimela reservoir.

In both the cases, the security forces trekked the hills cutting through the deep forests a night prior to the mission. Undetected, they positioned themselves at vantage points, waited for the dawn break and took the Maoists by surprise by opening heavy fire. Even before, the red rebels could retaliate, half of them were down. The operations were carried out based on specific info and the security forces followed the guerrilla tactics of the Maoists (Assemble and retreat- Assemble and strike). The forces struck when the Maoists had assembled after a retreat. Sources in the intelligence department suggest that drones and GPS tracking were also used to trace the specific location in both the operations.

Cascading effect

Two major strike in their heartland will have a huge fallout on their movement, said a senior IPS officer who is on deputation with the CRPF in Chhattisgarh. “This will slow down their movement and more importantly, they (Maoist) will not take the risk of importing cadres from Chhattisgarh to AOB region where their presence is on the lowest ebb,” he said.