Anti-insurgency operations by security forces, which have been going on for three decades now in and around Jharkhand and Bihar, have finally borne fruit. A senior Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) official said today that Budha Pahad in Jharkhand, which was once a Naxal-dominated area, has now been "freed" from insurgents. CRPF Director General Kuldiep Singh told reporters that Bihar had also been freed from Naxals. He added that some Maoist elements may still be present there in the form of extortion gangs, but there is no place in the state where Naxals are in domination.
"There is no place in Bihar and Jharkhand where forces cannot reach [the Maoists]," Mr Singh added.
"Forces were sent to Budha Pahad on a helicopter. A permanent camp has also been set up there. This has been done under three separate operations -- 'Operation Octopus', 'Operation Thunderstorm' and 'Operation Bulbul'," CRPF Director General Kuldiep Singh told reporters. According to him, on September 5, security forces freed the Budha Pahad peak, covering an area of 12 square kilometres along the Jharkhand-Chhattisgarh border, which was out of bounds for the security forces for 30 years.
"We have been softening up these areas continuously. We managed to cut off the funds and logistical support for the rebels, identify their routes and isolate them," he explained, adding that after reclaiming Budha Pahad, the Superintendent of Police for the area camped there for almost a week. Even the District Magistrate visited the area twice.
"Budha Pahad was dominated by the Naxals for the past 32 years.
A permanent base was set up there in the last two days under 'Operation Octopus' and troops were sent there on helicopter," he said.
Soon after the CRPF official address the media, Union Home Minister Amit Shah took to Twitter to commend the role of the security forces in their fight against Naxals. "Zero tolerance policy of Home Ministry against terrorism and Left-wing extremism (LWE) will continue," Shah Tweeted.
"We have managed to soften the extremely inaccessible areas of Chakrabandha and Bhimabandh of Bihar and successfully ousted the Maoists from their strongholds, establishing permanent security camps there," the CRPF DG said.
All these areas were strongholds of top Maoist leaders and a huge quantity of arms, ammunition, grenades, Aero Bombs and improvised explosive devices were recovered from these places, he added.
Mr Singh said incidents of Left Wing Extremism (LWE) have come down significantly in these areas. "There has been a 77 per cent reduction. In 2009, it was at an all-time high with 2,258 incidents, which has come down to 509 at present. Death rate has also come down by 85 per cent," the CRPF official added.
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