From Drone Intel to Improving Local Intel: All That's on Table to Defeat Naxals

New Delhi: “Sacrifice of martyrs will not go in vain,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday, within hours after Naxals killed 25 men of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Sukma, Chhattisgarh. As the government looks determined to take a decisive action against the Maoists, News18 analyses the option available before the government.

According to experts, a surgical strike is not possible in the dense jungles. And even though targeted attacks will be a preferred choice of the forces, the lack of local intelligence makes them tough to implement.

Deployment of army in the heart of the country is an often talked about option, but even the army has been against it. Army has said in the past that it should not be used for internal law and order problems. However, a committee led by former home secretary L C Goyal had suggested setting up of an army camp at Bastar to instil fear in the hearts of Maoists.

Among the latest suggestion is the use of drones to identify the Naxal camps. But this is easier said than done. While portable drone Netra has fly time of only 30 minutes, hardly enough to scan the vast jungles; the bigger drones, operated by Air Force personnel from Bhillai, would be disrupted by foliage. These drones would send data to Bhillai, which will then be shared with the nearest CRPF camp. One big challenge is that Naxals are extremely mobile. They don’t spend more than 2-3 hours at one position.

This brings one back to the question of improving local intelligence. CRPF had earlier suggested that to win over the locals, its camps should be turned into development hubs with ATMs, dispensary, drinking water facility, etc so that locals and tribals have a stake in protecting them. The goodwill among locals would also improve intelligence inputs.

The Monday’s attack was against the forces deployed to protect the construction workers who were working on a road project. Three major roads are being built in Naxal-hit areas — Bijapur to Dantewada, North Bastar to Dantewada and Andhra Pradesh to Dwada. These roads go through the heart of Naxal territory. The construction work has been going on since the past 5 years. The CRPF has suggested that these roads be completed quickly.