The CRPF Director General said the robot was being tested and it would be put to field trials soon.
A 'robo cop' would soon assist Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) patrols to detect hidden Maoist-planted IEDs and landmines that have caused numerous fatal causalities in the country's largest paramilitary force. CRPF Director General (DG) K Durga Prasad today said the capabilities of the robotic device were being ascertained by the force in consultation with IIT Mumbai.
Using the device, hidden bombs beneath the dirt tracks or '
pucca' roads could be identified and safely defused, thereby saving a troop from being killed or maimed by its explosive impact, said Mr Prasad, who retires tomorrow.
A senior official said the robot under test was a four-wheeled machine, which can be remotely operated by patrol teams to detect and safely defuse the bomb in a secure environment.
The CRPF DG said the robot was being tested and it would be put to field trials soon so that the menace of IEDs could be thwarted.
Blasts by Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and hidden explosives have killed hundreds of CRPF and other security forces personnel while as many have been severely maimed or have lost their limbs. The force is also looking at getting some special boots, under test at a Hyderabad-based institute at present, which could save troops from getting hit by IEDs, hidden beneath the ground, during explosions.
The DG said 2016 had the "lowest level" of violence in the Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas and the force estimates that the weapon and ammunition strength of the Maoists has come down to a large extent.
The Maoists' dream of having a "red corridor" of their presence in the country has been shattered, he added. "A large number of cadres are surrendering...some important cadres are surrendering regularly now. There is no red corridor as it was propagated earlier....the Maoists are now contained to pockets only," he added.
"We have been able to penetrate their hideouts and fortress. Our teams have inflicted heavy losses on the Maoists," said the outgoing DG who headed over 3-lakh-personnel strong force for a year. Mr Prasad said the CRPF had stepped up joint training with the security and police forces of states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and others in order to undertake effective and combined anti-Maoist operations.
The CRPF, with over 90 battalions (90,000 personnel) in LWE theatre, is the lead anti-Maoist operations force of the country.