In a first of its kind usage in an ongoing operation against the CPI(Maoist), security forces used an Unmanned Arial Vehicle(UAV) to track down Maoists in Sukma district of Chattisgarh during its hot pursuit in which nine Maoists were killed. The CPI(Maoist) military wing was planning major strikes in Andhra Pradesh during its ongoing Tactical Counter Offensive Campaign (TCOC) with focus on Warangal, Khammam and Adilabad districts of Telangana region.
While the gunning down of top military commander of the North Telangana special zonal committee Sudhakar and his wife Pushma comes as major blow for the Maoists in the region, top security sources said over the last one year, the Maoists “military units” are deploying women in the forefront of its operations to fight security forces as part of its tactical approach. With five women among nine Maoists killed in the encounter with security forces, on Tuesday, officials said the arrested Maoists cadres will now be questioned on how more and more young girls are being forced to join the Reds and trained in mobile warfare. “We now expect retaliatory strikes by the Maoists and the anti-Naxal forces have been asked to keep tight vigil,” an official said.
What is causing further alarm among security agencies, the UAV, which captured images of the encounter, has thrown up images of retreating Maoists trying to use children as shields while fleeing from the encounter spot. “The images are being scanned for more clues,” an official said on condition on anonymity.
Security sources said that the tribal families are allegedly being coaxed by Maoists to part with their girl child to join the Maoist companies even as the boys are being retained by such families.
The information gathered by the agencies is based on interrogation of arrested Maoist cadres. Sources said Birnala, a woman Maoist cadre who recently surrendered to the Chattisgarh police, is now likely to be questioned about the presence of women in the banned outfit.
The Latehar encounter in Jharkhand in which 11 security personnel were killed earlier this year had also witnessed the presence of women military commanders of the outfit.
The CRPF, meanwhile, is purchasing more than a dozen defence manufactured UAVs and a number of mine protected troop carriers to aid and guide ground patrols of the force conducting anti-Naxal operations. The CRPF, which has deployed close to 85,000 personnel for anti-Naxal operations, has decided to make these big ticket purchases from indigenous defence establishments like the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB). At present, the CRPF is flying UAVs in Maoist zones in order to give its foot soldiers an advanced view of the jungle terrain and indicate possible movement of armed Maoist cadres with the help of the Netra mini-UAVs. The force is now keen to use the bigger UAV Nishant developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) of the DRDO and used by the Indian Army.