Maoist Major Incidents 2008

Andhra Pradesh

May 30: At least four CPI-Maoist cadres were killed in an encounter with the Andhra Pradesh Police near Gunupurai village in the Visakhapatnam district. Among those killed were Jhansi, a woman ‘Dalam (squad) commander’ of the Korukonda area. Unofficial sources said that Police have arrested three more Maoists during the incident. Police sources, however, did not confirm the arrests.

May 5: Three naxalites belonging to the Janasakti faction of the CPI-ML including two senior functionaries of the outfit, were killed during an encounter with police party in Rollapadu forests under Tekulapalli police station limits in the Khammam district. Eight other naxalites, however, managed to escape. Four weapons including two 88 mm rifles, a Springfield rifle and a tapancha (locally made revolver) were recovered from the spot. The slain naxalites were identified as district committee secretary Solipeta Yadava Reddy alias Daya, State committee member Konda Sanjeeva Reddy alies Bhaskar and Pandu Yadagiri alias Arun, a leader of the rank of district committee secretary.

January 26: CPI-Maoist cadres shot dead three persons, accusing them of being police spies, at Borlagunda village in the Karimnagar district. According to the police, a group of 15 Maoists entered the village at around 2am (IST), picked up the three from their homes and gunned them down after branding them "police informers". The three had been associated with the Maoist outfit in the past.

Jharkhand

September 17: Three cadres of the CPI-Maoist were killed in an encounter near Ghamapahari in the Chatra district. The 90-minute encounter occurred after a special task force of police and CRPF personnel carried out a raid on a tip off about a Maoist gathering. Superintendent of Police, Hazaribagh, Praveen Kumar Singh said while the body of Jeetendra, believed to be the section commander of the action squad of Maoists has been recovered, Maoists managed to escape with bodies of two of their colleagues. An SLR and a .303 rifle, both looted from the police armoury earlier were recovered from the encounter site. Other recovered items include ten bags, 450 live cartridges, four electronic detonators, INR 19,000, posters in Hindi and jewelleries.

August 30: 12 police personnel were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in was blown up in a landmine blast in the East Singhbhum district. Deputy Superintendent of Police Madhusudan Bari told that the policemen led by sub-inspector Ravi Kant, in-charge of the Digha police picket, were on a long range patrol when the landmine planted by suspected CPI-Maoist cadres exploded near Burudih dam. All the 12 occupants of the vehicle died on the spot.

July 29: Three hardcore Maoists, including two women cadres, were killed in an encounter that ensued after security force personnel raided the Tilaya forest area under Vishnugarh police station in the Hazaribagh district. The slain insurgents were identified as a 'zonal commander' Niranjan Da alias Chandru Manjhi and two women cadres Anita alias Vinita and Mamta. Hazaribagh district Superintendent of Police Praveen Kumar Singh said that some injured extremists managed to escape from the incident site. The SFs also recovered one self-loading rifle, two regular rifles (303) both looted from police, 150 rounds of ammunition which included live cartridges for 303 rifles, a large quantity of Maoist literatures, diaries containing the names and amount of levies realised, names of newly recruited members along with receipt books and one Motorola brand walkie-talkie and other materials from the spot. Approximately 100 Maoists had reportedly assembled at Tilaya forest area near Narki village to celebrate their 'martyr week' along with Niranjan Da and dozens of women cadres.

July 8: CPI-Maoist cadres shot dead a MLA belonging to the Janata Dal-United, Ramesh Singh Munda, along with his two bodyguards and a teenaged boy at the sub-divisional town of Bundu in the Ranchi district. The MLA was distributing prizes to students at the S. S. College when the incident occurred. Maoists, numbering around 12, first killed one of the three security guards, Shiv Nath Minj, outside the hall where the ceremony was under way. They then barged in and fired bullets killing Munda and his other bodyguard Khurshid Alam. A student was caught in the firing and died after being hit by a bullet. Munda's third bodyguard, Shesh Nath Singh, who survived, said that the entire attack was over within 10 minutes.

June 30: A Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) and four constables were killed in a landmine blast triggered by suspected CPI-Maoist cadres at Pundigiri village in the Bundu area, 50-kilometres from State capital Ranchi. While the DSP and two constables were killed on the spot, two others succumbed to injuries when they were being shifted to the hospital. Another critically injured police personnel was admitted to the hospital. The police personnel were returning to the headquarters after conducting raids in the Bundu area. Jharkhand police Deputy Inspector General (DIG) RK Mallik said, "The Maoists had planted a landmine on the return route of the police party and set it off when the vehicle passed through that point."

June 4: Three CPI-Maoist cadres were killed during an encounter with the security forces near Bhopadih village in the Chatra district. The slain Maoists include Ganesh Ganju, a ‘sub-zonal commander’ of the outfit. Police also arrested two Maoists. The encounter occurred when the Police personnel carried out a raid in the village after receiving information of a Maoist meeting there. The Maoists retaliated with gun fire when the SFs asked them to surrender. One carbine, one pistol, explosives and Maoist literature were recovered from the encounter site.

June 2: CPI-Maoist cadres killed three villagers near the capital Ranchi for allegedly collecting money in the name of the outfit. Police said the three people were abducted from Parasi village in Tamar block, around 70 kilometres from Ranchi, on June 1 and their bodies were recovered the next day from the forest area of Tamar. Pamphlets left near the bodies said, "Anyone who will extort money in the name of our organization will meet the same fate."

June 1: Four CPI-Maoist cadres, including a ‘sub-zonal commander’ and a woman extremist, were killed in an encounter with the police at Sundermahto village in the Hazaribag district. A tip off by an arrested Maoist, identified as Arjun Yadav, reportedly led to the encounter in which three Maoists and the former were killed. Police sources said that Arjun was killed while trying to escape. Police recovered two guns, one pistol and a landmine weighing 30-kilograms were recovered from the possession of the slain Maoists.

May 21: The CPI-Maoist cadres shot dead three persons and injured another at Kotam village in the Gumla district. The Superintendent of Police Baljit said that among the dead were two brothers, identified as Nijamul Ansari and Ajmul Ansari. A group of six Maoists opened fire on a shop owned by the brothers killing them and a customer Mahesh Mahto. Police suspect extortion could be the motive behind the attack.

April 27: Five CPI-Maoist cadres were killed during an encounter with the security forces near the Dilwa railway station. Police sources said that a group of 100 Maoists were planning to blow up the nearby Koderma railway station when the SFs intervened, leading to the encounter. The SF personnel recovered an unspecified number of rifles and cartridges from the incident site.

April 26: Three policemen and two CPI-Maoist cadres were killed in an encounter in Dumka.

April 8: Nine persons were killed and two others injured when the CPI-Maoist cadres fired on a vehicle and subsequently set it ablaze in the Semra forest area under Palkot police station of Gumla district. Among the victims were Bhado Singh, a member of Shanti Sena (Peace Force), a police backed resistance force, and his family members. Singh and his family members were proceeding to Palkot from Bhagina village.

April 1: Joint teams of the Jharkhand Police and the CRPF personnel in an encounter killed eight CPI-Maoist cadres, including a woman and a ‘sub zonal commander’ of the outfit, at Bandu village under Ranka Police Station in the Garhwa district. The Director General of Police (DGP), V. D. Ram, told, "We had received a tip off about the movement of Maoists. One SLR, four 303 rifles, three 315 rifles, one sten-gun, one DBBL gun, one country made revolver and large number of live cartridges besides naxal literatures and belongings of the Maoists were recovered." Of the eight slain Maoists, one was identified as Basant Yadav, a ‘sub-zonal commander’, while two others are suspected to be Rajesh Paswan and Lallan Thakur, both ‘area commanders’.

CPI-Maoist cadres killed four civilians at Poradih-Chenpur village in the Khunti district. Dead bodies of the victims whose throats were slit were recovered on April 2. A hand-written note left behind by the Maoists claimed the four persons were being ‘punished’ for indulging in robbery. The Maoists also claimed to have taken away a hand-made pistol and three motorbikes from the slain villagers.

February 14: Seven CPI-Maoist cadres, including Vikash, an accused in the killing of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Member of Parliament Sunil Mahto, were killed in an encounter with security forces at Phuljore in the East Singhbhum district. Deputy Inspector General of Police Manoj Mishra stated that two women cadres were among the slain Maoists. The encounter followed an exchange of fire between the Maoists and the Nagarik Suraksha Samiti (NSS), a vigilance organisation formed by villagers with support of the district police, in which two Maoists were killed. When a joint team of the Central Reserve Police Force and local police personnel rushed to the area to assist the NSS, an encounter took place with the Maoists in which five extremists were killed. Eight weapons and some live cartridges were recovered from the encounter site.

January 11: Three CPI-Maoist cadres, including a ‘zonal commander’ of the CPI-Maoist, Mahendra Karwa, were killed in a fierce three hour gun battle with security forces in Chainpur hills of the Palamau district, the police said. The gunfight took place when patrolling Jharkhand police and CRPF personnel spotted 10 Maoists on January 11-night. The police recovered two rifles, live cartridges and explosives from the slain cadres.

Bihar

August 21: Six policemen, two CPI-Maoist cadres and a civilian were killed in an exchange of fire after Maoists carried out an attack on the policemen who had come for a routine inspection of a branch of the Punjab National Bank at the Raniganj village in the Gaya district. The Maoists, numbering nearly 12, also looted five self-loading rifles of the policemen. Five of the slain policemen belonged to the Special Auxiliary Police, a special force comprising ex-Army personnel created by the Bihar Government to combat the left-wing extremists.. Magadh range Deputy Inspector General of Police Praveen Bashist said the extremists had positioned themselves at strategic points near the bank and opened fire on the policemen the moment they got down from the jeep, giving them little time to react. The Maoists left behind one of the motorcycles used in the operation. They also left behind a handwritten leaflet, saying the operation was aimed at police to avenge atrocities by them.

May 14: Six CPI-Maoist cadres were killed in an encounter with the police at Nawada on the Bihar-Jharkhand border. Police received a tip-off about a meeting of the Maoists at Mahari village to plan an operation in the area and subsequently rushed to the village. Six Maoists were killed and four policemen were injured in the encounter. Police also seized three assault rifles, one carbine, hundreds of live cartridges and eight bombs from the incident site.

April 13: Six persons, including five security force personnel and a porter, were killed in an attack by the CPI-Maoist cadres at Jhajha railway station in the Jamui district. A group of 200 Maoists attacked the crowded railway station, and looted 27 3.15 rifles, six self-loading rifles, two carbines and 898 rounds of ammunition from the GRP armoury. The Maoists also damaged an ATM of the State Bank of India in an attempt to loot cash, but had failed. They had also made an unsuccessful attempt to loot cash from a locker in the railway station.

April 10: CPI-Maoist cadres killed six persons belonging to the Sashastra People’s Morcha (SSM) in the Tardih forest of Rohtas district. The slain persons, natives of Barachatti and Mohanpur blocks of Gaya district, were former members of the CPI-Maoist and had formed the SSM to assist the police. Maoist pamphlets charging the slain persons with "betraying the parent organisation and serving as police informers", were found at the incident site.

February 21: Suspected CPI-Maoist cadres shot dead three farmers at Pipra village under the jurisdiction of the Darpa police Station in the East Champaran district. Heavily armed Maoists attacked the village around midnight and shot dead three persons said to be farmers, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) A. K. Singh said. However, Times of India quoted the Raxaul DSP Santosh Kumar Gupta as saying that it was not a Maoist attack, rather it was the result of the clash between Community Party of India- Marxist Leninist (CPI-ML) and the late landlord's Harendra Singh’s henchmen.

January 13: Police claimed to have killed six cadres of the CPI-Maoist in an encounter at Bangudwa Naktaia hills in the Gaya district. The Deputy Superintendent of Police, Balram Kumar Choudhry, said that dead bodies of the slain Maoists could not be recovered from the encounter site as these were taken away by their colleagues. The encounter is reported to have occurred following a police raid on a Maoist hideout. The encircled Maoists, instead of laying down their arms, opened fire on the raiding party forcing the police to return fire in which six Maoists were killed.

January 1: At least four policemen were killed and another sustained injuries in an attack by the CPI-Maoist cadres on Bariapur police post in the Munger district. More than 100 Maoists attacked the police post, which was keeping a vigil over a picnic spot in Rishikund, where hundreds of people had gathered to celebrate the New Year. According to sources, the Maoists did not disturb the tourists and opened indiscriminate fire on policemen killing four on the spot.

Chhattisgarh

December 28: A school teacher, a villager and one Special Police Officer were killed and five persons injured when about 50 armed cadres, including some women, of the CPI-Maoist opened indiscriminate fire at a weekly market in Kokrapara of Bijapur district

November 25: Seven Policemen were killed when suspected cadres of the CPI-Maoist blew up a bridge near Mardapal, about 100 kilometres from the district headquarter Jagdalpur in Bastar. A contingent of over 150 Policemen carrying Electronic Voting Machines were trekking their way back to Jagdalpur when the Maoists blew up the 30 metre-long bridge. The Policemen were walking in a single file maintaining safe distance from each other, said Additional Deputy General of Police Giridhari Nayak, adding, "that was the reason why there were fewer casualties." Two more SF personnel were injured. The SF personnel were reportedly returning from election duty at polling booths in Tumdibala, Kudhur and Nahakanar in Narayanpur assembly constituency where re-polling was held on November 24.

November 11: Police killed three suspected CPI-Maoist cadres during an encounter at the thickly forested hamlet of Kharka in the Narayanpur district of the Bastar region. Pawan Deo, DIG- Police Headquarters, told IANS, "The gun battle began when a combing squad of the district force was challenged by armed Maoists. Three rebels were killed on the spot."

October 20: 12 Para-military personnel belonging to the CRPF were killed and six others injured in an ambush by the CPI-Maoist extremists near a forest village between Modupal and Kompalli in the Bijapur district. Bijapur SP Ankit Garg said the incident took place around 1.30 pm when CRPF men patrolling the area were moving towards the Modupal base camp. They were attacked by large number of Maoists who first set off an explosion and then opened fire. Police sources said three security personnel were killed in the blast while nine others were killed in the firing that followed. A Maoist was killed when the CRPF personnel returned fire. Maoists also escaped with weapons of the dead and injured personnel, including an Ak-47 assault rifle, two SLRs, a light machine gun and INSAS rifles.

September 29: Four CRPF personnel including a deputy commandant were killed in a landmine explosion on a road leading to Chitrakoot in the Bastar district. The blast is suspected to have been triggered by the CPI-Maoist. Official sources said that the blast took place when two jeeps of a road opening party carrying 12 CRPF personnel were heading towards Chitrakoot. While Diwakar Mahapatra, a deputy commandant of the CRPF, and the driver of the vehicle died on the spot, two of the injured personnel succumbed to injuries in the government hospital in Bastar. The condition of the three others was reported to be critical. President Pratibha Patil was visiting the Bastar region at the time of the incident.

September 4: Five security force personnel, including three CRPF soldiers, were killed and five others injured in an attack by suspected CPI-Maoist cadres in the forests near village Chunchuna Pundagh of Sarguja district. The area is close to the inter-state border with Jharkhand. Director General of Police Vishwaranjan said the extremists ambushed the SF personnel, who were patrolling the area and started firing indiscriminately at them.

August 29: Six CRPF personnel, including an inspector identified as R S Kang, were killed in a landmine explosion triggered by suspected CPI-Maoist cadres in the Narayanpur district. The incident occurred on a state highway when the CRPF team was proceeding on an anti-Maoist operation from Konda to Narayanpur at around 11 AM, CRPF spokesman Ajay Chaturvedi said. The vehicle carrying the team was blown up in the explosion.

August 29: Six CRPF personnel, including an inspector identified as R S Kang, were killed in a landmine explosion triggered by suspected CPI-Maoist cadres in the Narayanpur district. The incident occurred on a state highway when the CRPF team was proceeding on an anti-Maoist operation from Konda to Narayanpur at around 11 AM, CRPF spokesman Ajay Chaturvedi said. The vehicle carrying the team was blown up in the explosion.

August 11: The Chhattisgarh Police raided a training camp of the CPI-Maoist at Awapalli forest area in the Dantewada district and killed three insurgents. Girdhari Nayak, the Additional Director General of Police, claimed that the Maoists suffered more casualties but only three bodies were recovered. Awapalli, some 500 kilometres south of capital Raipur near the Andhra Pradesh border, is considered a Maoist stronghold.

June 30: Suspected CPI-Maoist cadres killed three activists of the Salwa Judum in the Bijapur district. The killed included two elected Panchayat members. The dead bodies were recovered near a village on the Amapalli-Ilmchi road. The three killed men had left for district headquarter Jagdalpur three days ago and but had not reached the destination.

June 25: Three policemen were killed in a CPI-Maoist ambush in Narayanpur district. Those killed included two Chhattisgarh Armed Forces' men and another from the district force of the state police. "Heavily armed insurgents, who were waiting on a hilly point in Narayanpur district, triggered a blast and then opened indiscriminate firing Wednesday night that killed three cops," Pawan Deo, Deputy Inspector General of Police. The Maoists also took away the weapons of the slain policemen.

June 19: Three SPOs were killed by CPI-Maoist in Banda police station limits of Dantewada district. The SPOs were abducted by the Maoists along with five other civilian police following an encounter in the forests, seven kilometers away from Konta town on June 18. The SPOs were taken to a Maoist camp in the forests blind-folded where they were asked to distance themselves from the Salwa Judum and the police. Five of them were then let off and three others – Gopal, Bhadru and Lakshmaiah, were shot dead and their bodies abandoned near Banda village.

June 8: Three Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel, including a sub-inspector, were killed and two others injured in an attack by the CPI-Maoist cadres in the Durg district. Police sources said that a group of Maoists blew up a jeep of CISF personnel using an IED near Mahamaya mines area under Dallirajehra Police station of the district, leading to the killings and the injuries. The Maoists were reported to have decamped with the arms of the killed and injured personnel.

June 7: June 7: Three CPI-Maoist cadres, including a woman, were killed during a gunfight with the Police in the Bijapur district. The incident took place near the forests of Bhairamgarh, about 480-km south of Raipur. "A team of District Force backed by Special Police Officers fought a gun battle with armed rebels and the 45-minute fight ended with three ultras, including a female commander, being killed," Girdhari Nayak, Inspector General of Police.

June 3: CPI-Maoist cadres killed three tribals and set ablaze six vehicles in the Dantewada district as part of their Jana Chaitanyam (Public Awareness) campaign. The killed persons include, businessman N. Ramakrishna and his associates T. Laxmaiah and S. Nagaraju, all residents of Chintakunta village in the Charla mandal, had left for Kondapalli on a two-wheeler on June 2. Their dead bodies were dug out near the Basavagu area.

May 8: Three policemen were killed when the CPI-Maoist cadres triggered a landmine blast and opened fire at a police party near Chhindpal village in the Kanker district. The slain police personnel were identified as platoon commander Sangram Singh, Assistant Sub-Inspector Shayamlal Ambali and Constable Mahulal. Police sources said that the attack by an estimated 150 Maoists occurred when a police party comprising 26 personnel were visiting the site to clear a tree felled by the Maoists to block the road.

May 6: CPI-Maoist cadres killed three tribal youths. Four youths were abducted from Yampuram tribal village near Charla under Pamedu police station in the Bijapur district. While three of them were killed by the Maoists and their bodies abandoned on the village outskirts, the whereabouts of the fourth one is not known. The Maoists reportedly held the youths responsible for the Pamedu encounter in which 17 Maoists had been killed in a joint operation by the Chhattisgarh police and Greyhounds personnel from Andhra Pradesh in March.

March 20: Three Salwa Judum activists were killed by the CPI-Maoist cadres in a forested stretch in southern Chhattisgarh. Maoists reportedly abducted the deceased from a relief camp at Mathwara village in the Bijapur district and three days later killed them by slitting their throats.

March 18: Joint security forces of Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh killed 17 CPI-Maoist cadres, including seven women inside the Darelli forest under Pamedu police station in the Bijapur district. The encounter followed an aerial survey that revealed an ongoing plenum of the Maoists attended by 60 cadres. Khammam Superintendent of Police D.S. Chauhan confirmed that those killed in the encounter were mostly from Khammam district. Weapons including an AK-47, three Self Loading Rifles (SLRs), landmines and many single shot weapons were recovered following two spells of the ambushes by the SFs. Police sources said more than 500 shots were fired by both sides in two spells — one at 9 AM and another four hours later. While 13 Maoists were killed in the first spell of encounter, four others were killed during the second assault.

February 18: The Special Task Force (STF) shot dead 10 CPI-Maoists inside Adesmetta forest under Gangalur police station in the Bijapur district after they were attacked by the Maoists who used landmines and automatic gunfire.

Three Central Reserve Police Force head constables and an equal number of constables were killed in an encounter with the Maoists in Tadkel hill of Mirtur police station area of Bijapur district, Inspector General of Police (Bastar range), Rajinder Kumar Vij, said. Three Maoists were also killed during the encounter, which began when a group of 60 CRPF personnel on a search mission were attacked by the Maoists with landmine blasts and machinegun fire in the area. "There were about 300 ultras," Vij said. Maoists escaped with the guns of the slain CRPF soldiers, he added.

February 2: Four Central Reserve Police Force personnel, including a Sub-Inspector, were killed by the cadres of the CPI-Maoist in an ambush in the Narayanpur district.

January 7: Police in the Kanker district claimed to have killed seven hardcore CPI-Maoist cadres following a raid on a camp of the outfit in a forested area under Koyalibera police station. Pawan Deo, Deputy Iinspector General of Police (Kanker range), told IANS, "We found heavy blood stains at the encounter site and enough evidence that rebels' bodies have been carried deep inside the forest during the 90-minute fierce gun battle." The police recovered three rifles, 36 detonators, four bundles of wires used for landmine blasts, pipe bombs, tiffin bombs, Maoist uniform and literature.

Orissa

August 23: Five persons including Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Lakshmanananda and four disciples, including a woman, were killed in an attack by suspected CPI-Maoist cadres on an ashram at Jalespata in the Kandhamal district. The armed extremists opened fire and hurled bombs after entering the ashram (hermitage) run by Swami Lakshmanananda at 8.30 p.m during a religious celebration. Orissa Director-General of Police Gopal Chandra Nanda told, "We suspect that the assailants could be Maoists." The CPI-Maoist, subsequently on August 29 claimed responsibility for the attack.

July 16: CPI-Maoist cadres killed 17 personnel of the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Orissa Police in a landmine blast in the Malkangiri district. The blast occurred at 4 pm (IST) in the MV-126 area when an anti-landmine van carrying the police team was returning to the district headquarters town of Malkangiri. The personnel had gone to MPV-41 village, where a contractor’s house was attacked by Maoists on July 15-night. A majority of the SOG personnel were in the anti-landmine vehicle and the remaining were on motorcycles. Soon after the blast, the Maoists, hiding in the nearby forest, opened fire on the policemen.

June 29: 35 security force (SF) personnel belonging to the Greyhounds from Andhra Pradesh were killed in an attack carried out by the CPI-Maoist cadres on a 68-member Andhra Pradesh-Orissa police party in the Chitrakonda reservoir of Malkangiri district, close to the Andhra Pradesh border. The SF personnel were returning after conducting combing operations, after getting information that the Maoists were holding a conclave there. Maoists opened fire using sophisticated weapons at the motorised boat in which the SF personnel were travelling. The boat capsized drowning most SF personnel. Others who swam ashore were reportedly ambushed by the Maoists.

February 17: At least 20 cadres of the CPI-Maoist, including some women cadres, were killed during the ongoing combing operation by security forces (SFs) in the border area of Nayagarh-Ganjam-Kandhamal districts. SFs, however, lost three of their personnel in the combing operation launched on a massive scale in different sensitive pockets in Nayagarh, Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal and Rayagada districts. The combing operations were started on February 16 after hundreds of Maoists raided the police establishments in Nayagarh district, killing 15 persons, including 13 policemen, and decamping with huge quantities of arms and ammunition on February 15-night. "We have information about killing of 20 Maoists and three jawans of Special Operation Group (SOG) during the combing operation," Home Secretary T. K. Mishra said. Without disclosing the exact location where the Maoists were killed by security forces, he said "reports are received from different places including the Gansar Hills". Mishra said sophisticated equipment like night (vision) binoculars, global positioning system (GPS) and other gadgets were being used to monitor movement of the extremists inside the dense forests. Two choppers were being used for movement of personnel in order to coordinate the operation, Mishra added.

February 15: 14 police personnel and a civilian were killed and four policemen were wounded when around 500 heavily armed cadres of the CPI-Maoist attacked a Police Training School (PTS), the district armoury and district police station in co-ordinated attacks near Daspalla in the Nayagarh district at around 10:45pm (IST). They also took away a cache of arms and ammunition in a bus they had hijacked in the district, about 100-km from State capital Bhubaneswar. Police sources claimed that three Maoists were also killed in the incident. However, their bodies have not been recovered and it is suspected that the Maoists before fleeing took away the bodies of their slain comrades. Before launching the attack, the Maoists, speaking in Hindi and Telugu, and suspected to be from neighbouring Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, announced that they would not harm the public as their target was the police. The police suspect it to be the handy work of Sabyasachi Panda, the CPI-Maoist Andhra-Orissa ‘secretary’. Meanwhile, a red alert has been sounded in the State and the police have started combing operations in the neighbouring districts of Phulbani, Gajapati, Rayagada and Malkangiri in Orissa. The attack was the first of its kind in coastal Orissa. The district armoury and PTS were virtually emptied by the Maoists, the police said. Though Nayagarh district had been unaffected by the Maoist insurgency, the extremists are active in the neighbouring Gajapati and parts of Kandhamal district. Nayagarh is also reportedly the home town of Maoist leader Sabysachi Panda.

West Bengal

October 22: Three persons, including a doctor of the West Bengal Health Department, were killed in a landmine blast set off by suspected CPI-Maoist in the West Midnapore district. The health department team was returning to Belpahari after conducting a health camp in a remote area. State Home Secretary Asoke Mohan Chakrabarti said four landmines exploded at Chaukisol, about two kilometres from Jharkhand border. Dhoni Ram Mandi, a doctor, Bharati Maji, a nurse, and Bapi Mishir, the driver of the vehicle, were killed on the spot. Villagers claimed that they had informed the police in the morning that "wires were lying on the road and that a landmine could have been planted, but no action was taken.

April 13: Suspected CPI-Maoist cadres killed three CPI-M activists in the Salboni area of West Midnapore district. The CPI-M zonal committee later said that one of the slain persons was the party’s local leader and the other two were supporters of the party. The killed persons were among the eight persons supervising earth-digging work under the rural employment programme when they were abducted by the Maoists. While five persons were later released, bodies of the three persons were recovered from a nearby forest.

Maharashtra

October 26: CPI-Maoist cadres ambushed a police party and killed four personnel near Korepalli village under Rajaram Khanla police station in Aheri tehsil in the Gadchiroli district. The 23-member Police party, a C-60 commando unit with four officers, was on a routine patrol in the area. The killed policemen have been identified as provisional sub-inspector S R Parekar and constables Vinod Uike, Ajay Maste and Vasant Madavi.

February 22: Four Naxalites and a police constable, identified as Shrinivas Yeliga Dandigwar, from the C-60 district police team, were killed in an exchange of fire between extremists and police in the Gadchiroli district. "We have recovered all the four bodies and the identification of the deceased is on," Additional Director General of Police (Anti-Naxalites operation) Pankaj Gupta told. The encounter took place at Tophar near Bhamragarh area. Police also recovered three .303 rifles and one self-loading rifle.

February 21: Three Naxalites, including platoon dalam ‘commander’ Chaitu were killed in Sironch area of the Gadchiroli district during an exchange of fire between the extremists and the police party. Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police, Rajesh Pradhan had claimed that the body of Chaitu was recovered while the Naxalites managed to carry away the remaining bodies.