Naxalite–Maoist insurgency

Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
Red Corridor–Naxalite active zones in 2018
Date 18 May 1967 (1967-05-18) – present (57 years, 6 months and 2 weeks) Location India Status Ongoing as a low level insurgency India successfully manages to reduce insurgent activity
Belligerents
India CRPF State Armed Police Forces Militias: (until 2011) Tritiya Prastuti Committee Salwa Judum Sunlight Sena Kuer Sena Ranvir Sena Bhumi Sena Lorik Sena	Naxalites: CPI (Maoist) PLGA Jharkhand Janmukti Parishad People's Liberation Front of India Revolutionary Communist Centre (2006–2019) Odisha Maobadi Party (2002–2015) CPIML Liberation (1974–1992) Lal Sena CPIML Janashakti (1992–2013, merged into CPI(ML) Class Struggle) CPUSI (1997–2005) CPIML ND CPIML MM (Until 2012) ABNES (until 2002) TNLA (until 2005) Supported by: ULFA NSCN PLA-MP MCPM KCP Declared support: International Communist League CPN (Maoist) CPN (Maoist) (2014) NPA PBSP (until 2021) PBCP (until 2021) CIC (until 1977) CCP (Maoist) (until 1976)
Commanders and leaders
Droupadi Murmu (President) Narendra Modi (Prime Minister) Amit Shah (Minister of Home Affairs) Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar (Director General) Pranay Sahay (Former Director General) Mahendra Karma † (Leader of Salwa Judum) Brahmeshwar Singh  X (Leader of Ranvir Sena)	Ganapathy Basavraj Azad † Anand # Kosa † Kishenji † Charu Majumdar (POW) Kanu Sanyal (POW) Jangal Santhal (POW) Sabyasachi Panda (POW) Prashant Bose (POW) Ashutosh Tudu (POW) Yalavarthi Naveen Babu † Narmada Akka † Arun Kumar Bhattacharjee (POW) Deo Kumar Singh # Milind Teltumbde † Jagdish Mahto † Ravindra Singh Kushwaha (POW) Subrata Dutta † Mahendar Singh † Anil Baruah † Shankar Rao †
Strength
CRPF: 313,634 State Armed Forces :1,289,900	10,000–20,000 members (2009–2010 estimate) 6,500–9,500 insurgents (2013 estimate)
Casualties and losses
2000–2024: 2,688 killed	2000–2024: 4,515 killed 16,901 Surrendered 16,394 Arrested
1996–2018: 12,877–14,369 killed overall 2000–2024: 4,032 civilians killed

The Naxalite–Maoist insurgency is part of an ongoing conflict between Left-wing extremist groups and the Indian government. The Naxalites are a group of communist supportive groups, who often follow Maoist political sentiment and ideology.

The insurgency started after the 1967 Naxalbari uprising and the subsequent split of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leading to the creation of a Marxist–Leninist faction. The faction splintered into various groups supportive of Maoist ideology, claiming to fight a rural rebellion and people's war against the government.

The armed wing of the Maoists is called the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army, mostly equipped with small arms. They have conducted multiple attacks on the security forces and government workers, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 4000 civilians and 2500 security force personnel since the 2000s. The influence zone of the Naxalites is called the red corridor, which consists of about 25 districts in Central and East India in 2021.

The insurgency reached its peak in the late 2000s with almost 180 affected districts and has been on the decline since then due to the counter-insurgency actions and development plans formulated by the Indian government. Naxalite organisations and groups have been declared as terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of India (1967).

Etymology

The term Naxalite originated from the name of the village Naxalbari in West Bengal where an uprising of peasents occurred in 1967. The movement itself is referred to as "Naxalism" and the people engaged are termed as "Naxals" or "Naxalites". The term "Naxalism" is broadly applied to refer to all the communist insurgent movements.

History

See also: Timeline of the Naxalite–Maoist insurgency

Naxalites are a group of far-left radical communists, supportive of Maoist political sentiment and ideology. Their origin can be traced to the splitting in 1967 of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), leading to the formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist). Initially the movement had its centre in West Bengal. In recent years, it has spread into less developed areas of rural central and eastern India, such as Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh through the activities of underground groups like the Communist Party of India (Maoist). Dalits and other lower-caste members have also joined the militant movement.

In 2007, it was estimated that Naxalites were active across "half of India's 28 states" which accounted for about 40 per cent of India's geographical area. The area under their control was known as the "Red Corridor", where according to estimates they had influence over 92,000 square kilometres. In 2009, Naxalites were active across approximately 180 districts in ten states of India In August 2010, Karnataka was removed from the list of Naxal-affected states In July 2011, the number of Naxal-affected areas was reduced to (including proposed addition of 20 districts) 83 districts across nine states.

Summary

The LWE is characterised in following 3 distinct phases, "Phase 1 (1967–1973)" – the formative phase, "Phase 2 (1967–late 1990s)" – the era of all-outthspread of LWE, and "Phase 3 (2004–now)" – relative decline after brief fightback.

• "Phase 1 (1967–1973) – the formative phase":
  LWE originated from the Naxalbari uprising which was started in 1967 at Naxalbari by the radical faction of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M). In 1969 the radical left CPI-M and formed the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) (CPI (ML)), they recruited students and launched widespread violence in West Bengal against the "class enemies" (such as landlords, businessmen, university teachers, police officers, politicians of the right and left) and others. Consequently, in 1971, Indira Gandhi launched Operation Steeplechase – a large scale anti-insurgency army operation against the Naxalites during the President's rule during which hundreds of Naxalites were killed and 20,000 were imprisoned.
• "Phase 2 (1967–late 1990s) – spread of LWE":
  During this phase LWE spread to India except Western India, and in 1980 Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) People's War (People's War Group (PWG)) was founded, and Greyhounds counterinsurgency task force was formed by the government of Andhra Pradesh.
• "Phase 3 (2004–now) – relative decline after brief fightback':
  PWG and Maoist Communist Centre of India (MCCI) merged to form the Communist Party of India (Maoist) in 2004. It went in a slow decline due to the all out Operation Green Hunt by the Indian state, the death toll and violence increased during the brief fightback by Naxals during 2009 and 2010, Since then LWE has been consistently declining in its geographical spread, cadre strength and number of violent incidence while the government infrastructure development has picked up the pace.

Phase 1 (1967–1973) – formative phase

The insurgency started in 1967 in the Naxalbari village of West Bengal by a radical faction of the CPI-M led by Charu Majumdar, Kanu Sanyal, and Jangal Santhal dubbed the Naxalbari uprising. Charu Majumdar wanted a protracted people's war in India similar to the Chinese Communist Revolution. He wrote the Historic Eight Documents which became the foundation of the naxalite movement in 1967.

The uprising inspired similar movements in Orissa, Andhra Pradesh (Srikakulam peasant uprising) and Kerala.

Naxalbari uprising

Main article: Naxalbari uprising

On 18 May 1967, the Siliguri Kishan Sabha, of which Jangal Santhal was the president, declared their support for the movement initiated by Kanu Sanyal, and their readiness to adopt armed struggle to redistribute land to the landless. At the time, the leaders of this revolt were members of the CPI (M), which joined a coalition government in West Bengal just a few months back. However, this led to dispute within the party as Charu Majumdar believed the CPM was to support a doctrine based on revolution similar to that of the People's Republic of China. Leaders like land minister Hare Krishna Konar had been until recently "trumpeting revolutionary rhetoric, suggesting that militant confiscation of land was integral to the party's programme." However, now that they were in power, CPI (M) did not approve of the armed uprising, and all the leaders and a number of Calcutta sympathizers were expelled from the party. This disagreement within the party soon culminated with the Naxalbari Uprising on 25 May of the same year, and Majumdar led a group of dissidents to start a revolt.

On 25 May 1967 in Naxalbari, Darjeeling district, a sharecropper of tribal background (Adivasi) who had been given land by the courts under the tenancy laws was attacked by the landlord's men. In retaliation, tribals started forcefully capturing back their lands. When a police team arrived, they were ambushed by a group of tribals led by Jangal Santhal, and a police inspector was killed in a hail of arrows. This event encouraged many Santhal tribals and other poor people to join the movement and to start attacking local landlords. After seventy-two days of revolt, the CPI (M) coalition government suppressed this incident. Subsequently, In November 1967, this group, led by Sushital Ray Chowdhury, organised the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries (AICCCR). Violent uprisings were organised in several parts of the country like the Srikakulam peasant uprising.

Mao Zedong provided ideological inspiration for the Naxalbari movement, advocating that Indian peasants and lower class tribals overthrow the government of the upper classes by force. A large number of urban elites were also attracted to the ideology, which spread through Charu Majumdar's writings, particularly the Historic Eight Documents. These documents were essays formed from the opinions of communist leaders and theorists such as Mao Zedong, Karl Marx, and Vladimir Lenin. Using People's courts, similar to those established by Mao, Naxalites try opponents and execute with axes or knives, beat, or permanently exile them.

Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist)

Main article: Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist)

On 22 April 1969 (Lenin's birthday), the AICCCR gave birth to the CPI (ML). The party was formed by the radicals of the CPI-M like Majumdar and Saroj Dutta. Practically all Naxalite groups trace their origin to the CPI (ML). The first party congress was held in Calcutta 1970. A Central Committee was elected. In 1971 Satyanarayan Singh revolted against the leadership, "individual killing of people branded as class enemy" and sectarianism of Majumdar. The result became that the party was split into two, one CPI (ML) led by Satyanarayan Singh and one CPI (ML) led by Majumdar.

In 1972, frail and broken Majumdar died of multiple diseases in police custody presumably as a result of torture; his death accelerated the fragmentation of the movement. After his death a series of splits took place during the major part of the 1970s. The Naxalite movement suffered a period of extremely harsh repression that rivalled the Dirty Wars of South America at the same time that the movement got all more fragmented. After Majumdar's death the CPI (ML) central committee split into pro- and anti-Majumdar factions. In December 1972 the Central Committee of the pro-Charu Majumdar CPI (ML) led by Sharma and Mahadev Mukherjee adopted resolution to follow the line of Charu Majumdar unconditionally which others did not agree to. The pro-Charu Majumdar CPI (ML) later split into pro- and anti-Lin Biao factions. The pro-Lin Biao faction became known as Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) (Mahadev Mukherjee) and the anti-Lin Biao-group later became known as Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation and was led by Jauhar, Vinod Mishra, Swadesh Bhattacharya. As a result of both external repression and a failure to maintain internal unity, the movement degenerated into extreme sectarianism.

Violence in West Bengal

Around 1971 the Naxalites gained a strong presence among the radical sections of the student movement in Calcutta. Students left school to join the Naxalites. Majumdar declared that revolutionary warfare was to take place not only in the rural areas as before, but now everywhere and spontaneously. Thus Majumdar declared an "annihilation line", a dictum that Naxalites should assassinate individual "class enemies" (such as landlords, businessmen, university teachers, police officers, politicians of the right and left) and others.

The chief minister, Siddhartha Shankar Ray of the Congress Party, instituted strong counter-measures against the Naxalites. The West Bengal police fought back to stop the Naxalites. The house of Somen Mitra, the Congress MLA of Sealdah, was allegedly turned into a torture chamber where Naxals were incarcerated illegally by police and the Congress cadres. CPI(M) cadres were also involved in clashes with the Naxals. After suffering losses and facing the public rejection of Majumdar's "annihilation line", the Naxalites alleged human rights violations by the West Bengal police, who responded that the state was effectively fighting a civil war and that democratic pleasantries had no place in a war, especially when the opponent did not fight within the norms of democracy and civility.

Operation Steeplechase

See also: Operation Green Hunt

killing hundreds of Naxalites and imprisoning more than 20,000 suspects and cadres, including senior leaders. The paramilitary forces and a brigade of para commandos also participated in Operation Steeplechase. The operation was choreographed in October 1969, and Lt. General J.F.R. Jacob was enjoined by Govind Narain, the Home Secretary of India, that "there should be no publicity and no records" and Jacob's request to receive the orders in writing was also denied by Sam Manekshaw.

By the 1970s the government led many crackdowns on the movement and by 1973 the main cadres of the Naxalites had been eliminated and were dead or behind bars. The movement fractured into more than 40 separate small groups. As a result, instead of popular armed struggle in the countryside, individual terrorism in Calcutta became a principal method of struggle.

Phase 2 (1970s to late 1990s)

See also: 1970 Bhojpur uprising

The early 1970s saw the spread of Naxalism to almost every state in India, barring Western India. During the 1970s, the movement was fragmented into disputing factions. By 1980, it was estimated that around 30 Naxalite groups were active, with a combined membership of 30,000. Though India's first wave of insurgent violence ended badly for this domestic left-wing extremist movement but did not eliminate the conditions inspiring the movement or all of those willing to hold to the Naxalite cause. This time, the insurgency was done in South India particularly in the (undivided) state of Andhra Pradesh.

On 22 April 1980, the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) People's War, commonly called as People's War Group (PWG) was founded by Kondapalli Seetharamaiah. He sought a more efficient structure in attacks and followed the principles of Charu Majumdar. By 1978 Naxalite peasant revolts had spread to the Karimnagar District and Adilabad District. These new waves of insurgents kidnapped landlords and forced them to confess to crimes, apologize to villagers, and repay forced bribes. By the early 1980s insurgents had established a stronghold and sanctuary in the interlinked North Telangana village and Dandakaranya forests areas along the Andhra Pradesh and Orissa border.

In 1985 Naxalite insurgents began ambushing police. After they killed a police sub-inspector in Warangal, IPS officer K. S. Vyas raised a special task force called the Greyhounds; an elite anti-Naxalite commando unit that still exists today to establish control in the seven worst affected districts.

The governments of Andhra Pradesh and Orissa managed to quell down the rebels with a variety of counterinsurgency measures. Including the help of the Greyhounds, the states established special laws that enabled police to capture and detain Naxalite cadres, fighters and presumed supporters. They also invited additional central paramilitary forces. The states also set up rival mass organisations to attract youth away from the Naxalites, started rehabilitation programs (like the Surrender and Rehabilitation package), and established new informant networks. By 1994, nearly 9000 Naxalites surrendered.

The armed wing of the Maoists is called the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army was founded on 2 December 2000 and are mostly equipped with small arms.

In 2003 following an attack on the then Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, the state embarked on a rapid modernisation of its police force while ramping up its technical and operational capabilities. By the early 2000s, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have seen very minimal Naxal presence.

Phase 3 (2004–present) – relative decline after brief fightback

The Communist Party of India (Maoist) was founded on 21 September 2004, through the merger of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) People's War (People's War Group), and the Maoist Communist Centre of India (MCCI). The merger was announced on 14 October the same year. In the merger, a provisional central committee was constituted, with the erstwhile People's War Group leader Muppala Lakshmana Rao, alias "Ganapathi", as general secretary. Further, on May Day 2014, the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Naxalbari merged into the CPI (Maoist). The CPI (Maoist) is active in the forest belt of Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha and some remote regions of Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

It has carried out several attacks (see Timeline of the Naxalite–Maoist insurgency) notably on 15 February 2010, several of the guerrilla commanders of CPI (Maoist), killed 24 personnel of the Eastern Frontier Rifles. On 6 April 2010, the Maoists ambushed and killed 76 paramilitary personnel. On 25 May 2013, the CPI (Maoist) ambushed a convoy of the Indian National Congress at Bastar, and killed 27 people including Mahendra Karma, Nand Kumar Patel and Vidya Charan Shukla. On 3 April 2021, twenty-two soldiers were killed in a Maoist ambush on the border of Bijapur and Sukma districts in southern Chhattisgarh.

In September 2009, an all-out offensive was launched by the Government of India's paramilitary forces and the state's police forces against the CPI (Maoist) termed by the Indian media as "Operation Green Hunt". Since the start of the operation: 2,266 Maoist militants have been killed, 10,181 have been arrested and 9,714 have surrendered.

In 2020, Naxal activity began to increase once again in Telangana and other areas.

In 2022, the West Bengal state government and police admitted that there had been a Maoist resurgence in the state, particularly in Jhargram, Purulia, Bankura, West Midnapur and Nadia. In May 2022, a new force was created by the Special Task Force of West Bengal Police named the "Maoist Suppression Branch".

Also indicative of a Maoist resurgence, Naxal forces expanded into new territory in the 2020s, most notably Madhya Pradesh. In 2022, most of the Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh fell under Maoist control.

As of May 2024, the Maoist activity have relatively suppressed due to the increase in Anti-terror operations conducted by the security forces. The security forces also carried out many operations like the 2024 Kanker clash which resulted in great loss of personnel and material for the Maoists.

Geography

Main article: Red corridor

Areas with Naxalite activity in 2007 (left), in 2013 (centre), and in 2018 (right)

The influence zone of the Naxalites is called the red corridor consisting of about 25 most affected and 70 total affected districts in Central and East India in 2021. The most affected districts accounted for 85% of the Left wing extremist incidents in India. The insurgency was its peak in the late 2000s with nearly 180 affected districts across an area of 92,000 km² (36,000 sq mi) and has been on the decline since then. In April 2018, 35 districts were classified as most affected amongst the 126 affected districts.

As of the early 2020s, the Naxal activity is largely concentrated in two clusters, the first in and round the forested remote hilly areas of Dandakaranya spread across Chhattisgarh and Odisha and the second in the border region of Jharkhand-Bihar-West Bengal. The affected districts include:

Naxal affected districts (2021)

State	No. of districts in State	No. of districts affected	Districts affected
Jharkhand	24	16	Bokaro, Chatra, Dhanbad, Dumka, East Singhbhum, Garhwa, Giridih, Gumla, Hazaribagh, Khunti, Latehar, Lohardaga, Palamu, Ranchi, Saraikela Kharsawan, West Singhbhum
Chhattisgarh	28	13	Balrampur, Bastar, Bijapur, Dantewada, Dhamtari, Gariyaband, Kanker, Kondagaon,  Mahasamund, Narayanpur, Rajnandgaon, Sukma, Kabirdham
Bihar	38	10	Aurangabad, Banka, Gaya, Jamui, Kaimur, Lakhisarai, Munger, Nawada, Rohtas,  West Champaran
Odisha	30	10	Bargarh, Bolangir, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabrangpur,  Nuapada, Rayagada, Sundargarh
Telangana	33	6	Adilabad, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Jayashankar Bhupalpally, Komaram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Mulugu
Andhra Pradesh	13	5	Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, West Godavari
Kerala	14	3	Malappuram, Palakkad, Wayanad
Madhya Pradesh	55	3	Balaghat, Mandla, Dindori
Maharashtra	36	2	Gadchiroli, Gondia
West Bengal	23	1	Jhargram
Total	369	70

Causes

Access to land and resources

The Maoist movement began in the late 1960s as a conflict between the tribal peasants and the land owners. This was attributed to a failure of the Indian government to implement constitutional reforms to provide for tribal autonomy with respect to natural resources on their lands, implement the land ceiling laws to limit the land possessed by the landlords and distribute the excess land to landless farmers and labourers. According to Maoist sympathisers, the Indian constitution "ratified colonial policy and made the state custodian of tribal homelands" and turned tribal populations into squatters on their own land, denying them their traditional rights to forest produce. Tribal communities participated in Naxalism probably as a means of push back against structural violence by the state, including the usage of land for the purposes of mineral extraction.

Rural development and protection

Impoverished areas with no electricity, running water, or poor healthcare provided by the state probably accepted social services from Naxalite groups, and gave their support to the Naxal cause in return. The state's absence allowed the Naxalites to become the legitimate authority in these areas by performing state-like functions, including enacting policies of redistribution and building infrastructure for irrigation. Testimonies from people and surveys by government officials and journalists have highlighted the protective and developmental work in the villages as a result of Naxalism. Healthcare initiatives such as malaria vaccination drives and medical units in areas without doctors or hospitals have also been documented.

As per an Indian government report, it was indicated that the Maoists “prevent the common villager’s powerlessness over the neglect or violation of protective laws…[from] a trader who might be paying an exploitative rate for forest produce, or a contractor who is violating the minimum wage.” It also mentions that the developmental work done by the Maoists including “mobilizing community labour for farm ponds, rainwater harvesting, and land conservation works in the Dandakaranya region, which villagers testified had improved their crops and improved their food security situation.” A 2010 case study in the Economic and Political Weekly taken from 200 Maoist-affected districts in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand, intended to investigate the government's initiative to increase employment in these Maoist-affected areas. It found that the claims of the government that the Maoists blocked developmental schemes were not valid and the Maoists were responsible for the enforcement of minimum wages in the areas. Although Naxalite groups engaged in coercion to increase membership, the experience of poverty when contrasted with the state's economic growth, could have created an appeal for the Naxal ideology and incentivised the tribal communities to join the Naxal movements out of "moral solidarity".

Naxal organisation and financing

See also: List of Naxalite and Maoist groups in India

The Naxalites focused on the idea of a revolutionary personality while recruiting people to the organisation, which was termed as necessary for maintaining and establishing loyalty among the Naxalites by Charu Majumdar. During the early years of the movement, he believed that the essential characteristics of a recruit must be selflessness and the ability to self-sacrifice, and in order to produce such a specific personality, the organisation recruited students and youth. In addition to entrenching loyalty and a revolutionary personality within these new insurgents, the Naxalites chose the youth also because of other reasons. These were mostly students and it was necessary to include educated youth as these recruits would then be involved in spreading the communist teachings of Mao Zedong. In order to expand their base, the movement relied on these students to spread the communist philosophy to the uneducated rural and working-class communities. Majumdar also believed that it necessary to recruit youth who would be able to integrate themselves with the peasantry and working classes, and by living and working in similar conditions to these lower-class communities, these recruits could carry the communist teachings to the villages and urban centres.

The Krantikari Adivasi Mahila Sangathan is a feminist organisation that was formed in 1986 as a result of the party's acknowledgment of extreme inequality against women, both within the party itself and among the tribal villages the party aimed to protect. They campaigned against the tribal tradition of forced marriage, bigamy and violence along with peasant rights. However, Shobha Mandi, a former member who later quit the organisation, wrote in her book Ek Maowadi Ki Diary that she was repeatedly raped and assaulted by her fellow commanders for more than seven years since she wanted to quit. She also claimed that wife-swapping and adultery are the common amongst the Maoists. The Naxalites claim that physical violence and sexual mutilation have been directed at their members by the police and the Salwa Judum, which had forced them to join the group.

Financing

Naxalites conduct detailed socio-economic surveys before operating in a target area and depend on diverse resources. Studies have indicated correlation between the core area of insurgency and the areas with extensive natural resources. The mining industry is a major financial source, wherein they collect about 3% of the profits from each mining company that operates in the areas under Naxal control as a means to continue mining operations and for "protection" services which allows miners to work without having to worry about Naxalite attacks. A 2006 report indicated that the Maoists extorted about ₹14 billion (US$170 million) annually. The organisation also funds itself through the drug trade, where it cultivates psychoactive plants such as marijuana and opium, which are then distributed throughout the country by middlemen who work on behalf of the Naxalites. About 40% of Naxal funding comes through the cultivation and distribution of opium. A surrendered Naxal claimed that they spent some of the money on public infrastructure while the rest is used for the sustenance of the group. In 2011, the Indian police accused the Chinese government of providing sanctuary to the movement's leaders, and claimed that the Pakistani ISI was providing financial support.

Action taken by the state

Infrastructure and social development projects

Three main schemes, the "Special Central Assistance" (SCA) scheme, "Security Related Expenditure" (SRE) scheme, and "Special Infrastructure Scheme" (SIS) have been launched for the economic development of LWE affected areas. As of July 2021, INR 2,698 crore (US$375 million) has released for 10,000 SCA projects, of which 85% were already complete. SRE is specially aimed at the "Most affected" districts, under which ₹1,992,been crores (US$276 million) has been released since 2014. Under these scheme various projects have been approved, including 17,600 km roads in two phases of which phase-I of 9,343 km is already complete, 2343 out of 5000 new mobile towers are already operational and remaining will be operational by December 2022, 119 out of 234 approved new Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) are already operational, remaining 1789 post offices out of total 3114 will be ready by mid-2022, 1077 ATMs and 1236 bank branches with 14,230 banking correspondents for the financial inclusion of people affected by the LWE have been operationalised. 400 fortified police station have been established under the SIS at the cost of INR 1006 crore (US$140 million). In addition funds have been released for the schemes to hire helicopters, media plan, police-public community activities and relations, etc.

As of July 2021, Madhya Pradesh has formed 23,113 women self-help groups in LWE districts covering 274,000 families, loans to tribals were waved, land rights and land ownership documents to tribal were granted, and 18 industries which will provide employment to 4000 people are being established.

Government views on the insurgency

In 2006, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called the Naxalites the "single biggest internal security challenge ever faced by our country". In June 2011, he said, "Development is the master remedy to win over people", adding that the government was "strengthening the development work in the 60 Maoist-affected districts.

In 2010 the Indian government's Home Secretary, Gopal Krishna Pillai, acknowledged that there are legitimate grievances regarding local people's access to forest land and produce and the distribution of benefits from mining and hydro power developments, but claims that the Naxalites' long-term goal is to establish an Indian communist state. He said the government decided to tackle the Naxalites head-on and take back much of the lost areas.

In 2011, Indian police accused the Chinese government of providing sanctuary to the movement's leaders, and accused Pakistani ISI of providing financial support.

In 2018, A senior home ministry official says the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government sought to stem insurgency by earmarking development funds for revolt-hit areas and improving policing. "One of the major initiatives of the government was clearing implementation of a Rs 25,060 crore umbrella scheme to modernise central and state police forces over the next three years," the official said.

Salwa Judum and other anti-insurgency vigilante groups

Since late 1990 several government backed armed anti-insurgency vigilante groups emerged, which were shut down in 2011 by the order of Supreme Court of India after the complaints of human rights violations and inquiry was ordered against the violators.

In Chhattisgarh, Salwa Judum, an anti-insurgency vigilante group which was aimed at countering the naxalite violence in the region was launched in 2005. The militia consisting of local tribal youth received support and training from the Chhattisgarh state government. The state came under fire from pro-Maoist activist groups for "atrocities and abuse against women", employing child soldiers, and looting and destruction of property, allegations rejected by a fact finding commission of the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC) in 2008. The commission, which had been appointed by the Supreme Court of India, determined that the Salwa Judum was a spontaneous reaction by tribals against Maoist atrocities perpetrated against them.

Around that time similar paramilitary vigilante groups had emerged in Andhra Pradesh including the Fear Vikas, Green Tigers, Nalladandu, Red Tigers, Tirumala Tigers, Palnadu Tigers, Kakatiya Cobras, Narsa Cobras, Nallamalla Nallatrachu (Cobras) and Kranthi Sena. Civil liberties activists were murdered by the Nayeem gang in 1998 and 2000. On 24 August 2005, members of the Narsi Cobras killed an individual rights activist and schoolteacher in Mahbubnagar district. According to the Institute of Peace and Conflict studies, Naxal groups have recruited children in different capacities and exposed them to injury and death. However the same accusation has been levelled at the state-sponsored Salwa Judum anti-Maoist group, and Special Police officers (SPOs) assisting the government security forces.

On 5 July 2011, the Supreme Court of India declared the militia to be illegal and unconstitutional, and ordered its disbanding. The Court directed the Chhattisgarh government to recover all the firearms, ammunition and accessories. In the court's judgement, the use of Salwa Judum by the government for anti-Naxal operations was criticised for its violations of human rights and for employing poorly trained youth for counter-insurgency roles. The Supreme Court of India, also ordered the government to investigate all instances of alleged criminal activities of Salwa Judum.

Casualties

The Naxalites have conducted multiple attacks on the security forces, government workers and civilians, with casualties on both sides. To enforce their control over the population, the Maoists have often convened kangaroo courts to mete out summary justice, death, beatings, or exile. As per the South Asia Terrorism portal, the conflict has resulted in the deaths of more than 11500 people including 4000 civilians, 2500 security force personneland 4500 Naxalites since the 2000s. As per the BBC, more than 6,000 people were killed in the 20 years between 1990 and 2010. Al Jazeera estimated the total death toll as 10,000 between 1980 and 2011.

Casualties by year

Year	Incidents	Deaths
		Civilians	Security Forces	Maoists	Not Specified	Total
1996	—	—	—	—	—	156
1997	—	202	44	102	—	348
1998	—	118	42	110	—	270
1999	—	502	96	261	—	859
2000	—	452	98	254	—	804
2001	199	130	116	169	44	459
2002	182	123	115	163	30	431
2003	319	193	114	246	30	583
2004	127	89	82	87	22	280
2005	343	259	147	282	24	712
2006	248	249	128	343	14	734
2007	274	218	234	195	25	672
2008	246	184	215	228	19	646
2009	407	368	319	314	12	1013
2010	481	630	267	265	18	1180
2011	302	259	137	210	0	606
2012	235	156	96	125	1	378
2013	186	164	103	151	0	418
2014	185	127	98	121	4	350
2015	171	90	56	110	0	256
2016	263	122	62	250	0	434
2017	200	107	76	152	0	335
2018	218	108	73	231	0	412
2019	176	99	49	154	0	302
2020	138	61	44	134	0	239
2021	124	58	51	128	0	237
2022	107	53	15	66	0	134
2023	113	61	31	57	0	149
2024	120	55	21	209	0	285
Total	5364+	5237+	2929+	5117+	243+	13682+

See also

• Timeline of the Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
• Separatist movements of India
• Terrorism in India
• Terrorist incidents in India
• Communist parties in India

Further reading

• Chakravarti, Sudeep (2008). Red Sun: Travels In Naxalite Country (Rev. ed.). New Delhi: Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0670081332.
• Mukherjee, Shivaji (2021). Colonial Institutions and Civil War: Indirect Rule and Maoist Insurgency in India. Cambridge University Press.
• Roy, Arundhati (2011). Walking With The Comrades. New Delhi: Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0670085538.
• Shah, Alpa (2019). Nightmarch: Among India's Revolutionary Guerrillas. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0226590165.
• Verghese, A. (2016). "British Rule and Tribal Revolts in India: The curious case of Bastar." Modern Asian Studies, 50(5), 1619–1644.

External links

• Naxal insurgency in India, CivilServiceIndia.com.
• Data on Naxalite-Maoist Insurgency fatalities in India, Institute for Conflict Management (South Asia), SATP.
• The political economy of the Maoist conflict in India : an empirical analysis, Joseph Gomes (2012), University of Madrid, Spain.
• Hearts and mines: A district-level analysis of the Maoist conflict in India, Kristian Hoelscher et al., University of Oslo, Norway, doi:10.1177/2233865912447022.
• Targets of Violence: Evidence from India’s Naxalite Conflict Oliver Vanden Eynde (2013), Paris School of Economics.
• India’s Naxalite Insurgency: History, Trajectory, and Implications for U.S.-India Security Cooperation on Domestic Counterinsurgency by Thomas F. Lynch III – Institute for National Strategic Studies.