Bhubaneswar: (11 Feb 2011) Maoists strike again at Kotagada. The Red rebels on Friday killed a Special Police officer (SPO) at Denguda village in Kandhamal.
The officer has been identified as Narenga Mallick. The incident took place between 9 -10 am today, when he was heading towards Kotagada police station for work.
According to reports, around four Maoists fired four rounds of bullet on him, killing him on the spot. Maoists left a poster near his body.
According to the poster, Mallick was earlier threatened about the consequences as he was helping the SOG jawans in the combing operations. They have also threatened the other SPO’s who are helping the forces in the combing operations.
Earlier on Thursday, armed Maoists had set afire a police outpost at Subarnagiri under Kotagada police limits in Kandhamal.
Showing posts with label Maoists. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maoists. Show all posts
Maoists blow up police post in Kandhamal
Armed Maoists set afire a police outpost in Orissa's Kandhamal district early on Thursday morning. Kandhamal SP Praveen Kumar said that around 50 Maoists, including women, attacked the newly-constructed outpost at Subarnagiri under Kotgarh police station and set it on fire. No casualty was reported.
“The rebels shouted anti-government slogans. They also left Maoist posters and leaflets warning the government of dire consequences for anti-Maoist operations in the area,” said Praveen Kumar. Additional force had been sent to the area for combing and patrolling.
“The rebels shouted anti-government slogans. They also left Maoist posters and leaflets warning the government of dire consequences for anti-Maoist operations in the area,” said Praveen Kumar. Additional force had been sent to the area for combing and patrolling.
Maoists block road in Kandhamal dist
28th January 2011
BERHAMPUR: Suspected Maoists blocked the Bramhanigaon-Daringibadi road by felling trees at Gadapur in Kandhamal district. This snapped off communication between the two town.
It was probably meant to hamper the combing operation launched by police in the area. Police had launched the combing operation suspecting that Maoists are hiding in the forest and increasing their activities in the area as well as adjoining Bhanjanagar and Sorada in Ganjam district.
On Wednesday, the Red radicals had hoisted black flags at the high school in Bahadapadara within Bhanjanagar police limits in Ganjam district. They also pasted a poster at the gate of the high school asking the people to observe Republic Day as black day. Police have seized the flag and poster from the school.
Police on Monday had unearthed three landmines planted by Maoists near Barada village in Ganjam district. The rebels had torched five vehicles of a contractor involved in road works in the area recently.
The Left-wing ultras had also torched vehicle of another contractor at Birikote within Bhanjanagar police limits recently and threatened the contractors to stop the work.
Panicky over the recent developments, people of Daringibadi, Bramhanigaon and Kotagarh area observe bandh on Wednesday following the Maoist's call to observe the Republic Day as "black day". Private bus operators stopped the plying of vehicles and businessmen downed their shutters in these towns.
BERHAMPUR: Suspected Maoists blocked the Bramhanigaon-Daringibadi road by felling trees at Gadapur in Kandhamal district. This snapped off communication between the two town.
It was probably meant to hamper the combing operation launched by police in the area. Police had launched the combing operation suspecting that Maoists are hiding in the forest and increasing their activities in the area as well as adjoining Bhanjanagar and Sorada in Ganjam district.
On Wednesday, the Red radicals had hoisted black flags at the high school in Bahadapadara within Bhanjanagar police limits in Ganjam district. They also pasted a poster at the gate of the high school asking the people to observe Republic Day as black day. Police have seized the flag and poster from the school.
Police on Monday had unearthed three landmines planted by Maoists near Barada village in Ganjam district. The rebels had torched five vehicles of a contractor involved in road works in the area recently.
The Left-wing ultras had also torched vehicle of another contractor at Birikote within Bhanjanagar police limits recently and threatened the contractors to stop the work.
Panicky over the recent developments, people of Daringibadi, Bramhanigaon and Kotagarh area observe bandh on Wednesday following the Maoist's call to observe the Republic Day as "black day". Private bus operators stopped the plying of vehicles and businessmen downed their shutters in these towns.
Maoist says Sorry!
Bhubaneswar: Maoist guerrillas issued a public apology on Saturday for having blown up an ambulance and killing five 'innocent' people in Orissa's Kandhamal district last month.
The rebels issued a statement which was received by some mediapersons in Phulbani town, the district headquarters of Kandhamal.
Communist Party of India-Maoist Orissa unit secretary Sabyasachi Panda alias Sunil said in the statement that the rebels were sorry that some innocent people had been killed.
One of the journalists who received the statement quoted Sunil as having said that the rebels triggered the blast on a tip-off that the vehicle was carrying some policemen.
'I have not seen it. However, I was informed by some journalists that they received a statement in which the rebel leader has apologised,' Kandhamal district superintendent S. Praveen Kumar said.
Five people, including two women and a child, were killed on Nov 27 night when Maoists blew up the ambulance in which they were travelling in a hilly and forested area of Kandhamal district.
The landmine blast took place near Brahmanigaon, some 350 km from Bhubaneswar, when the victims were on their way home in a nearby area after admitting a pregnant woman in a government hospital in neighbouring Ganjam district.
Kumar said police have intensified combing operations in the district to nab the rebels involved in the blast.
The rebels issued a statement which was received by some mediapersons in Phulbani town, the district headquarters of Kandhamal.
Communist Party of India-Maoist Orissa unit secretary Sabyasachi Panda alias Sunil said in the statement that the rebels were sorry that some innocent people had been killed.
One of the journalists who received the statement quoted Sunil as having said that the rebels triggered the blast on a tip-off that the vehicle was carrying some policemen.
'I have not seen it. However, I was informed by some journalists that they received a statement in which the rebel leader has apologised,' Kandhamal district superintendent S. Praveen Kumar said.
Five people, including two women and a child, were killed on Nov 27 night when Maoists blew up the ambulance in which they were travelling in a hilly and forested area of Kandhamal district.
The landmine blast took place near Brahmanigaon, some 350 km from Bhubaneswar, when the victims were on their way home in a nearby area after admitting a pregnant woman in a government hospital in neighbouring Ganjam district.
Kumar said police have intensified combing operations in the district to nab the rebels involved in the blast.
Maoists target ambulance
Suspected Maoists blew up an ambulance in Kandhamal district of Orissa late on Saturday, killing all its five occupants, including a three-year-old girl.
The ambulance was coming back from a government hospital in Berhampur after dropping a pregnant woman when the Maoists triggered a landmine blast on a hilly road near Brahmanigaon around 2 a.m., Kandhamal SP Praveen Kumar said.
Brahmanigaon is a Maoist-infested area where Azad, the man who killed Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in August 2008, calls the shots.
The blast killed all five occupants on the spot and created a deep crater on the ground.
All the victims are Dalits and tribal Christians. They are Subhashree Digal (3), her mother Erina Digal, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) worker Sushanti Pradhan, Bunu Digal and driver Siman Mallick.
The SP said the landmine blast could have been a deliberate attack. “The ambulance must have had a blue beacon on its top. So how come the rebels did not see it?” he asked.
But police sources said the ambulance could have been targeted by mistake as the Maoists were actually looking for a deputy superintendent of police who had come to Brahmanigaon two days ago to investigate the killing of a contractor. The Maoists are yet to come out with any statement.
On Thursday, the Maoists had shot contractor Manoj Sahu at the crowded Brahmanigaon market. A bandh was called in Brahmanigaon on Saturday to protest the contractor’s killing.
The DSP was scheduled to travel back on that road on Saturday night, but deferred his visit.
Local officials said they were not sure if the ambulance had a blue beacon on top. Vehicles in the area normally do not sport any beacons after sunset as it could attract Maoists.
Local tribal leader Lambodar Kanhar said the Maoists had proved that they were just murderers. “I have been telling my fellow tribals time and again to steer clear of the Maoists and not give them shelter. If we help them, then the police would come after us branding us as informers,” Kanhar said.
The ambulance was coming back from a government hospital in Berhampur after dropping a pregnant woman when the Maoists triggered a landmine blast on a hilly road near Brahmanigaon around 2 a.m., Kandhamal SP Praveen Kumar said.
Brahmanigaon is a Maoist-infested area where Azad, the man who killed Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in August 2008, calls the shots.
The blast killed all five occupants on the spot and created a deep crater on the ground.
All the victims are Dalits and tribal Christians. They are Subhashree Digal (3), her mother Erina Digal, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) worker Sushanti Pradhan, Bunu Digal and driver Siman Mallick.
The SP said the landmine blast could have been a deliberate attack. “The ambulance must have had a blue beacon on its top. So how come the rebels did not see it?” he asked.
But police sources said the ambulance could have been targeted by mistake as the Maoists were actually looking for a deputy superintendent of police who had come to Brahmanigaon two days ago to investigate the killing of a contractor. The Maoists are yet to come out with any statement.
On Thursday, the Maoists had shot contractor Manoj Sahu at the crowded Brahmanigaon market. A bandh was called in Brahmanigaon on Saturday to protest the contractor’s killing.
The DSP was scheduled to travel back on that road on Saturday night, but deferred his visit.
Local officials said they were not sure if the ambulance had a blue beacon on top. Vehicles in the area normally do not sport any beacons after sunset as it could attract Maoists.
Local tribal leader Lambodar Kanhar said the Maoists had proved that they were just murderers. “I have been telling my fellow tribals time and again to steer clear of the Maoists and not give them shelter. If we help them, then the police would come after us branding us as informers,” Kanhar said.
Kandhamal people fear Maoist attack
Bhubaneswar, Nov 29 (IANS) People in parts of Orissa's communally sensitive Kandhamal district remained indoors Monday fearing a Maoist attack, two days after the rebels blew up an ambulance killing all its five occupants in the area, police said.
The landmine blast took place Saturday night in a hilly and forested area near Brahmanigaon village, some 350 km from here.
Roads were deserted Monday as vehicles stayed away in Brahmanigaon village and in about 20 other nearby villages. People feared that the rebels may have planted more landmines.
Shop owners also pulled down shutters, fearing a rebel attack.
'Normal life has been affected in Brahmanigaon and in about 20 villages located around it,' a police officer said, adding that a high alert has been sounded.
'Police and paramilitary have been deployed at various strategic points. They have launched combing operations to locate the rebels involved in the mine blast,' he said.
Five people, including two women and a three-year-old girl, were killed when the rebels blew up the ambulance in which they were travelling Saturday night.
'We are afraid because it was for the first time the rebels targeted an ambulance in the region,' said Raghunath Digal, who lives in the area.
Source:IANS
Maoists blow up ambulance in Orissa, 5 killed
Bhubaneswar: At least five persons, including two women and a three-year-old child, were killed as Maoists blew up an ambulance by triggering a landmine blast in Orissa's Kandhamal district, police said on Sunday.
"We have received information about a landmine explosion that blew up an ambulance in Brahmanigaon area of Kandhamal late last night," Director General of Police Manmohan Praharaj said.
The ambulance was on its way from Gadapur to Brahmanigaon, about two km from the blast site, when it was targetted in the Maoist infested area close to Gajapati and Ganjam, the police said.
The explosion that took place near a culvert at Pangdugaon, about 300 km from Bubaneswar, killed among others a woman health worker, a pregnant woman and the ambulance driver, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Southern Range) R K Sharma said.
Maoist 'commander' arrested for Orissa VHP leader's murder
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Bhubaneswar (IANS): A Maoist was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly masterminding the murder of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Laxmanananda Saraswati in Kandhamal district last year, police said. The murder led to widespread communal violence in the state.
Udaya alias P. Rama Rao, 'commander' of the Bansadhara division of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), was arrested with three of his associates from Gudari area of Rayagada district, some 400 km from here, District Superintendent of Police A.K. Singh told IANS.
"Udaya is one of the masterminds in the killing of Laxmanananda Saraswati in Kandhamal," Singh said.
"Udaya is third in command of the Maoist group operating in Orissa. He was involved in over 20 heinous crimes including murder, rioting, looting of government armouries," the official said.
Kandhamal, about 200 km from here, witnessed widespread communal violence after the murder of Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides at his ashram at Jaleshpata Aug 23 last year.
Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes after their houses were attacked by rampaging mobs. At least 38 people - most of them Christians - were killed in the violence. Police had earlier arrested seven people for the killings.
Singh said that Udaya, 45, was also involved in the Maoist attack at Nayagarh town, some 85 km from Bhubaneswar, in February last year.
Over 500 rebels allegedly led by Udaya and other Maoist leaders simultaneously attacked several police stations, a police training centre and a police post and looted weapons from a government armoury. Over a dozen policemen were killed in the attack.
"We have also recovered several weapons from them which include a revolver and a pistol and live cartridges," the official said.
Bhubaneswar (IANS): A Maoist was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly masterminding the murder of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Laxmanananda Saraswati in Kandhamal district last year, police said. The murder led to widespread communal violence in the state.
Udaya alias P. Rama Rao, 'commander' of the Bansadhara division of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), was arrested with three of his associates from Gudari area of Rayagada district, some 400 km from here, District Superintendent of Police A.K. Singh told IANS.
"Udaya is one of the masterminds in the killing of Laxmanananda Saraswati in Kandhamal," Singh said.
"Udaya is third in command of the Maoist group operating in Orissa. He was involved in over 20 heinous crimes including murder, rioting, looting of government armouries," the official said.
Kandhamal, about 200 km from here, witnessed widespread communal violence after the murder of Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides at his ashram at Jaleshpata Aug 23 last year.
Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes after their houses were attacked by rampaging mobs. At least 38 people - most of them Christians - were killed in the violence. Police had earlier arrested seven people for the killings.
Singh said that Udaya, 45, was also involved in the Maoist attack at Nayagarh town, some 85 km from Bhubaneswar, in February last year.
Over 500 rebels allegedly led by Udaya and other Maoist leaders simultaneously attacked several police stations, a police training centre and a police post and looted weapons from a government armoury. Over a dozen policemen were killed in the attack.
"We have also recovered several weapons from them which include a revolver and a pistol and live cartridges," the official said.
We killed Swami, Maoists say again
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BHUBANESWAR: Orissa's top ranking Maoist Sabyasachi Panda has once again claimed that the red brigade killed Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his disciples at his Jalespeta ashram on August 23. Panda's statement came in form of an interview telecast by a TV channel on Sunday.
The interview showed Panda speaking from an undisclosed forest area, his head covered with a towel, face back to the camera and two men donning military fatigue standing by his side with assault rifles in their hands.
Panda defended his action and threatened more such murders. "Laxmanananda was not fighting for Hindus. He was heading the VHP and implementing an agenda targeted against the minorities," he said. "No one speaks for minorities. They are exploited. The riot, after the murder of Laxmanananda, was a conspiracy by the Sangh Parivar. Even without his killing, they would've caused riots to impose their agenda on the people," he said.
"The riots have nothing to do with the conflict between the Panas and Kandh tribals," he said.
Bajrang Dal national co-convener Subhash Chouhan rubbished Panda's claims, describing it as an attempt to divert public attention from the core issue. "We don't believe the Maoists killed Swami Laxmanananda, who, in his lifetime, never said a word against them. Except spreading education among the poor and telling them about the rich tradition of India and the threat from conversions, he did nothing for which Maoists should have targeted him. Religion is the consideration behind his killing which has outraged the masses, their political affiliation or reservation against us notwithstanding," he said.
Orissa DGP Manmohan Praharaj disapproved of media's focus on Panda. "When the situation in Kandhmal is returning to normal, such coverage by the media are bound to add fuel to fire. The Maoists are trying to queer the pitch for their own interest," he said.
BHUBANESWAR: Orissa's top ranking Maoist Sabyasachi Panda has once again claimed that the red brigade killed Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his disciples at his Jalespeta ashram on August 23. Panda's statement came in form of an interview telecast by a TV channel on Sunday.
The interview showed Panda speaking from an undisclosed forest area, his head covered with a towel, face back to the camera and two men donning military fatigue standing by his side with assault rifles in their hands.
Panda defended his action and threatened more such murders. "Laxmanananda was not fighting for Hindus. He was heading the VHP and implementing an agenda targeted against the minorities," he said. "No one speaks for minorities. They are exploited. The riot, after the murder of Laxmanananda, was a conspiracy by the Sangh Parivar. Even without his killing, they would've caused riots to impose their agenda on the people," he said.
"The riots have nothing to do with the conflict between the Panas and Kandh tribals," he said.
Bajrang Dal national co-convener Subhash Chouhan rubbished Panda's claims, describing it as an attempt to divert public attention from the core issue. "We don't believe the Maoists killed Swami Laxmanananda, who, in his lifetime, never said a word against them. Except spreading education among the poor and telling them about the rich tradition of India and the threat from conversions, he did nothing for which Maoists should have targeted him. Religion is the consideration behind his killing which has outraged the masses, their political affiliation or reservation against us notwithstanding," he said.
Orissa DGP Manmohan Praharaj disapproved of media's focus on Panda. "When the situation in Kandhmal is returning to normal, such coverage by the media are bound to add fuel to fire. The Maoists are trying to queer the pitch for their own interest," he said.
Maoists warn Sangh Parivar
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BHUBANESWAR: Renewing its warning to members of the Saffron brigade, the State Organisation Committee of CPI (Maoist) has trained its guns on at least 14 persons, accusing them of targeting the minorities in the volatile Kandhamal district.
Issuing a release, committee secretary Sunil said Swami Lakshmanananda was ‘punished’ for similar reasons. Now, it would be the turn of the Sangha Parivar members who are eliminating the minorities in the guise of riot.
The outlawed outfit named them - BJP MLA Narendra Majhi from Baliguda, RSS district president Niranjan Sahoo and contractor Ajit Sahoo of Daringibadi. Similarly, Sangha Parivar leaders like Manoj Pradhan, Sudam Behera, Padma Panda and Dilu Mohanty (Raikia), Ganga Sahu and Rabi Sahu (Baliguda), Balakrushna Jundi (Phirngia) and Krushna Panigrahy, Bisi Majhi and Kaka Sahu (K Nuagaon) were also on the hit-list of the Left wing ultra outfit
BHUBANESWAR: Renewing its warning to members of the Saffron brigade, the State Organisation Committee of CPI (Maoist) has trained its guns on at least 14 persons, accusing them of targeting the minorities in the volatile Kandhamal district.
Issuing a release, committee secretary Sunil said Swami Lakshmanananda was ‘punished’ for similar reasons. Now, it would be the turn of the Sangha Parivar members who are eliminating the minorities in the guise of riot.
The outlawed outfit named them - BJP MLA Narendra Majhi from Baliguda, RSS district president Niranjan Sahoo and contractor Ajit Sahoo of Daringibadi. Similarly, Sangha Parivar leaders like Manoj Pradhan, Sudam Behera, Padma Panda and Dilu Mohanty (Raikia), Ganga Sahu and Rabi Sahu (Baliguda), Balakrushna Jundi (Phirngia) and Krushna Panigrahy, Bisi Majhi and Kaka Sahu (K Nuagaon) were also on the hit-list of the Left wing ultra outfit
Indian Maoists kill Hindus over Christian conversions
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By Jatindra Dash
BHUBANESWAR, India (Reuters) - Suspected Maoists killed a senior Hindu leader and four others in a remote eastern Indian village, an attack that police said may be linked to a controversy over religious conversions in the area.
Armed men raided a Hindu school in Orissa's rural Kandhamal district on Saturday and killed five people, including an octogenarian leader linked to India's main opposition Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The remote, forested region is a hotbed of religious tensions between hardline Hindus who accuse Christian priests of bribing poor tribespeople and low-caste Hindus to change their faith.
Christian groups say lower-caste Hindus who convert do so willingly to escape the highly stratified and oppressive Hindu caste system.
Tensions came to a head on Christmas Eve last year when fights broke out in which one person was killed and churches and temples were damaged.
The region is a stronghold of Maoist rebels and police say they have evidence to link the guerrillas to Saturday's attack.
"We have found a letter from the spot which indicates that it may be a Maoists attack," Kishan Kumar, the area's top government official, told Reuters, adding the automatic rifles used in the attack were similar to the ones used by the Maoists.
Police say by attacking Hindus the Maoists were trying to garner support among the region's poor tribes, most of which had converted to Christianity.
"There are instances where the rebels have threatened Hindu temples here," said Satish Gajbhiye, a senior police official.
The murdered Hindu leader was leading a local campaign to reconvert Hindus and tribal people from Christianity.
Saturday's killings have sparked tension in the area with hundreds of Hindus blocking roads and stopping trains. Thousands of policemen were deployed to maintain peace. Reports said one church was burned down by Hindu crowds.
India's constitution is secular, but most of its billion-plus citizens are Hindu. About 2.5 percent of Indians are Christians.
There have been attacks on Christians in the past in Orissa and other parts of India. In 1999, a Hindu mob killed Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two children by burning them in their car in Orissa.
(Writing by Krittivas Mukherjee; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
(For the latest Reuters news on India see in.reuters.com, for blogs see blogs.reuters.com/in)
By Jatindra Dash
BHUBANESWAR, India (Reuters) - Suspected Maoists killed a senior Hindu leader and four others in a remote eastern Indian village, an attack that police said may be linked to a controversy over religious conversions in the area.
Armed men raided a Hindu school in Orissa's rural Kandhamal district on Saturday and killed five people, including an octogenarian leader linked to India's main opposition Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The remote, forested region is a hotbed of religious tensions between hardline Hindus who accuse Christian priests of bribing poor tribespeople and low-caste Hindus to change their faith.
Christian groups say lower-caste Hindus who convert do so willingly to escape the highly stratified and oppressive Hindu caste system.
Tensions came to a head on Christmas Eve last year when fights broke out in which one person was killed and churches and temples were damaged.
The region is a stronghold of Maoist rebels and police say they have evidence to link the guerrillas to Saturday's attack.
"We have found a letter from the spot which indicates that it may be a Maoists attack," Kishan Kumar, the area's top government official, told Reuters, adding the automatic rifles used in the attack were similar to the ones used by the Maoists.
Police say by attacking Hindus the Maoists were trying to garner support among the region's poor tribes, most of which had converted to Christianity.
"There are instances where the rebels have threatened Hindu temples here," said Satish Gajbhiye, a senior police official.
The murdered Hindu leader was leading a local campaign to reconvert Hindus and tribal people from Christianity.
Saturday's killings have sparked tension in the area with hundreds of Hindus blocking roads and stopping trains. Thousands of policemen were deployed to maintain peace. Reports said one church was burned down by Hindu crowds.
India's constitution is secular, but most of its billion-plus citizens are Hindu. About 2.5 percent of Indians are Christians.
There have been attacks on Christians in the past in Orissa and other parts of India. In 1999, a Hindu mob killed Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two children by burning them in their car in Orissa.
(Writing by Krittivas Mukherjee; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
(For the latest Reuters news on India see in.reuters.com, for blogs see blogs.reuters.com/in)
South Orissa puts on high alert after Maoists threat letter to police
By Anurjay Dhal
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Last updated: 06/11/2008 10:13:49
Last updated: 06/11/2008 10:13:49
Bhubaneswar (Orissa): The entire South Orissa on Wednesday put on high alert following a threat issued by the outlawed CPI (Maoists) to blow up several police establishments in Southern Police Range comprising districts Berhampur, Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal and Boudh.
The letter assumes significance in the wake of killing of several political leaders mostly belonging to the ruling Biju Janata Dal in Koraput and Malkangiri districts under the South-Western Police range having headquarters at Sunabeda.
An inland letter written in Oriya was received at Bhanjanagar police station in Ganjam district through post. The letter was posted from Saranakula in Nayagarh district and praised the activities of the leftwing guerrillas' outfit, a top Intelligence official revealed here.
The letter has targeted the police and the forest personnel, he added. "We have apprised the matter to the concerned authorities,'' he said, but expressed doubts as to whether the letter was sent by the Maoists. "Some one is likely to dispatch the letter to make mischief", he apprehended.
DIG, South Police Range , RP Koche, Ganjam SP Nitinjit Singh, Berhampur SP S Devadutta Singh and Kandhamal SP Nikhil Kanodia, however, refused to comment on the letter. Sources said police were put on alert in the border areas of Kandhamal and Nayagarh districts. Additional forces were deployed in Bhanjanagar and Surada police stations.
While at least two platoons of police forces deployed at Bhanjanagar, one company of Central Reserve Police was deployed at Surada. Police were conducting combing operations at Bhanajanagar after the recent Maoist strike in Nayagarh.
The Maoists had gunned down at least 13 police personnel and looted huge quantities of arms and ammunition on February 15 at Nayagarh. Gosama hilltop bordering southern districts of Ganjam and Kandhamal, some 300 kilometers southwest of State Capital of Bhubaneswar was in news following the red mayhem in Nayagarh.
Meanwhile, senior cops also fear that if primitive action was not taken it would be difficult task for the security forces to control the increase of extremism in Phulabani and Kandhamal, "If things are not checked at this juncture, the district would soon take the place of Chattisgarh's Bastar district," says a senior police official quoting in condition of anonymity.
Phulbani surrounded by dense jungles from all sides Deogarh, Gajapati, Rayagada, Nayagarh and Ganjam.
The difficult terrains of Kandhamal bordering four the leftwing ultras stronghold districts except Nayagarh have come in handy for the ultras to strengthen their base over the past two years. Kandhamal has porous borders at Adaba in Gajapati, Gunupur in Rayagada, Soroda in Ganjam and from all corners of Deogarh district.
Now, Sambalpur to get anti-Naxal funds
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Saturday May 3 2008 09:18 IST
Saturday May 3 2008 09:18 IST
Express News Service
SAMBALPUR: SAMBALPUR district, which was earlier excluded from the pilot project launched by the Centre to tackle Naxalism by providing special security related expenditure (SRE), may now have reasons to cheer.
If official reports are to be believed, the district has finally been included under the project entitling it to receive the SRE. Although 15 districts in the State had been identified as Naxal-infested and were getting SRE, six districts including Sambalpur had been excluded.
Initially, nine districts comprising Rayagada, Malkangiri, Ganjam, Gajapati, Koraput, Nabarangpur,Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar and Sundargarh were enlisted to receive SRE. Later the State Government recommended the names of Sambalpur, Deogarh, Dhenkanal, Kandhamal, Jajpur and Nayagarh.
It is learnt that while the Centre is yet to consider the inclusion of all the six districts, Sambalpur has been included and this was conveyed at the meeting convened by Union Cabinet Secretary at New Delhi recently, which was also attended by State Chief Secretary, Home Secretary and the Director General of Police. The exclusion of the district was for the first time reported in this paper and the State Government was blamed for its failure to present the case of Sambalpur.
Additional funds under SRE would help the police strengthen its intelligence further besides facilitating several development projects.
Contacted Sambalpur SP Sanjay Kumar said that while he is yet to receive any communication regarding the matter, he admitted that the funds will help them improve mobility and make the force more effective to combat Naxalism.
He said that it will also help them pay 15 percent extra salary to personnel working in Naxal-prone areas, as declared by the State Government. Even the surrender policy launched for Naxals would become more lucrative, he added.
Maoists killed in India fighting
 Several hundred rebels were involved in the attack on policemen |
Three security personnel were also killed in the clashes, officials say.
The fighting comes days after 13 policemen were killed when 500 Maoist rebels attacked a police compound in the state's Nayagarh district.
The rebels stole a huge amount of weapons and ammunition from the site's armoury during Friday night's attack.
Orissa police chief Gopal C Nanda said 115 rifles, a carbine and half a truckload of ammunition stolen by the rebels have been recovered from a forest in neighbouring Kandhamal district.
'Biggest threat'
The police said heavy fighting between the rebels and security forces was going on around the Gosamal hills in Kandhamal district.
Around 600 federal paramilitary forces along with 100 men belonging to an special anti-Maoist force and armed police have surrounded the forests where the rebels are believed to be hiding, officials say.
Indian Air Force helicopters are also flying over the area to track down the rebels.
The Maoists are active in many states across east and central India. They focus on areas where people are poor but there is great mineral wealth.
The rebels say they represent the rights of landless farmhands and tribal communities. Hundreds of people have died over the past few years in Maoist-related violence.
The Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, recently described the rebels as the biggest threat to the country's security and called for a dedicated security force to combat them.
20 Maoists gunned down
BHUBANESWAR: The Orissa government continued its anti-naxal operation for the second day on Sunday and the authorities claimed that about 20 Maoists were killed in the exercise. Three policemen were also killed in the operation.
The operation started on Saturday 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 Friday night.
Home Secretary Tarun Kanti Mishra told presspersons here that they had gathered unconfirmed information that 20 Maoists were killed in the operation.
The three policemen killed in the heavy exchange of fire between the two sides on Saturday evening include an Assistant Commandant of the Special Operation Group of the State Police and two jawans of the Orissa State Armed Police.
Police hopefulThe intensive combing operations in Nayagarh, Ganjam, Kandhamal and Gajapati districts would continue and the police were hopeful of achieving a big success, Mr. Mishra said.
Director-General of Police Gopal Chandra Nanda said the extremists behind the Nayagarh incidents were moving in forest areas in groups and the police were chasing them in a similar way.
The main exercise was on in the forests in Ganjam and Kandhamal districts, he said.
Two Air Force helicopters were being used to track down the Maoists and the security personnel were moving from place to place as per the information provided through aerial surveillance by the helicopters.
Though the number of policemen deployed in the operation had not been made public, police sources said around 500 personnel, including a large number of Central Reserve Police Force men, three units of Greyhound force from Andhra Pradesh and men from different wings of the State police were involved.
A Central team, including Special Secretary (Internal Security) in the Home Ministry M.L. Kumawat, visited Nayagarh to take stock of the situation.
Central supportThe Union government would give all support to the State government to deal with the situation, he said.
A delegation of political leaders, led by Leader of the Opposition J.B. Patnaik, also visited Nayagarh.
The team blamed the government for the poor security at the arms depots that were attacked.
Naxals’ double-edged sword: Opium & robbery
Sunday November 25 2007 09:01 IST RATAN K PANI
SAMBALPUR: Over the years, cultivation of hemp or ganja or its like in the interior areas never visited by any official has become a major source of money for the Left wing ultras.
The Maoists are repeating the time-tested method already used by their cadre in neighbouring Jharkhand to fund the banned group’s activities.
The police have also linked the illicit trade to the spate of bank robberies. The robberised, they feel, could have a Naxal link with the cash being channelled to them either in the form of protection money or extortion from bigger groups who operate from their ‘liberated zones’. Police personnel, Excise and Revenue officials had to trudge 12 km of inhospitable terrain to Kudanali and a neighbouring village in Naktideul block on Monday last before they could lay their hands on the hemp cultivation spread over 20 acres of land. Police destroyed the hemp valued at Rs 16 cr.
Similar detection in Kandhamal in November last year was claimed to be the biggest haul in the country worth a whopping Rs 116 cr.
And more recently on Thursday, 6,000 hemp plants valued at Rs 2.5 cr were destroyed in the forests of Khajuripada and Sunajhari of Boudh district which of late has become the meeting ground of the Naxals for their onward journey down south for the formation of ‘Red Corridor’.
Maintaining that he has received similar reports of hemp cultivation from farflung areas of Malkangiri district, SP Satish Gajbhaiye said the police would come down heavily on the illicit trade. Even Sambalpur SP Sanjay Kumar had expressed apprehension that money from hemp cultivation is being channelled to the ultras. There has also been a report of the Naxals being involved in bank robbery in Sundargarh.
While involvement of Left wing ultras in such cases in Orissa is yet to be established, going by available data, bank robbery has been reported from Rourkela, Barbil and Baripada which are located close to Maoist-infested areas on Jharkhand border.
Original Trackback URL http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEQ20071124223944&Page=Q&Headline=Naxals%92+double-edged+sword%3A+Opium+%26+robbery&Title=ORISSA&Topic=0
SAMBALPUR: Over the years, cultivation of hemp or ganja or its like in the interior areas never visited by any official has become a major source of money for the Left wing ultras.
The Maoists are repeating the time-tested method already used by their cadre in neighbouring Jharkhand to fund the banned group’s activities.
The police have also linked the illicit trade to the spate of bank robberies. The robberised, they feel, could have a Naxal link with the cash being channelled to them either in the form of protection money or extortion from bigger groups who operate from their ‘liberated zones’. Police personnel, Excise and Revenue officials had to trudge 12 km of inhospitable terrain to Kudanali and a neighbouring village in Naktideul block on Monday last before they could lay their hands on the hemp cultivation spread over 20 acres of land. Police destroyed the hemp valued at Rs 16 cr.
Similar detection in Kandhamal in November last year was claimed to be the biggest haul in the country worth a whopping Rs 116 cr.
And more recently on Thursday, 6,000 hemp plants valued at Rs 2.5 cr were destroyed in the forests of Khajuripada and Sunajhari of Boudh district which of late has become the meeting ground of the Naxals for their onward journey down south for the formation of ‘Red Corridor’.
Maintaining that he has received similar reports of hemp cultivation from farflung areas of Malkangiri district, SP Satish Gajbhaiye said the police would come down heavily on the illicit trade. Even Sambalpur SP Sanjay Kumar had expressed apprehension that money from hemp cultivation is being channelled to the ultras. There has also been a report of the Naxals being involved in bank robbery in Sundargarh.
While involvement of Left wing ultras in such cases in Orissa is yet to be established, going by available data, bank robbery has been reported from Rourkela, Barbil and Baripada which are located close to Maoist-infested areas on Jharkhand border.
Original Trackback URL http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEQ20071124223944&Page=Q&Headline=Naxals%92+double-edged+sword%3A+Opium+%26+robbery&Title=ORISSA&Topic=0
Now, Maoists take new roadmap ( Ganjam - Kandhamal - Boudh)
Article From Newindpress
Wednesday September 26 2007 13:27 IST
SISIR PANIGRAHY
BERHAMPUR: Maoists, with their long cherished plan to set up a ‘red corridor,’ have taken a new roadmap. The red patch joining Andhra and Chhattisgarh will pass through several newly ‘taken over’ areas of south-western Orissa.
Armed Naxals have been sighted these days along Ganjam-Kandhamal border. Their movements were also reported from remote areas of Bhanjanagar, Bargarh, Sorada, Mujagarh, Baibili and Tarsing in Ganjam district close to Kandhamal border. The dense jungles and hilly terrains of this region are conducive for safe movement of ultras.
If their plan to establish the ‘red corridor’ along Ganjam- Kandhamal-Boudh-undivided Sambalpur border succeeds, it will give them the much-needed passage between their bastions in Andhra and Chhattisgarh.
The Maoists have already established bases in Gajapati and Rayagada districts. They have now started their campaign with wall posters with a warning note for the sympathisers of local landlords, police and government in the inaccessible border areas of Ganjam-Kandhamal districts.
Police from both the districts have started joint combing operations along with the anti-Naxal squad. According to sources, the Naxals have slipped in to South Orissa after mounting pressures in the aftermath of an unsuccessful bid on the life of former AP chief minister N Janardhan Reddy.
All police stations in Ganjam district in this region have been put on high alert. Ganjam SP R K Sharma said extra patrolling and public relation drive in remote tribal pockets of the area have been taken up to keep tribals away from Maoist propaganda.
Trackback URL : http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEQ20070926030609&Page=Q&Headline=Now%2C+Maoists+take+new+roadmap&Title=ORISSA&Topic=0
Wednesday September 26 2007 13:27 IST
SISIR PANIGRAHY
BERHAMPUR: Maoists, with their long cherished plan to set up a ‘red corridor,’ have taken a new roadmap. The red patch joining Andhra and Chhattisgarh will pass through several newly ‘taken over’ areas of south-western Orissa.
Armed Naxals have been sighted these days along Ganjam-Kandhamal border. Their movements were also reported from remote areas of Bhanjanagar, Bargarh, Sorada, Mujagarh, Baibili and Tarsing in Ganjam district close to Kandhamal border. The dense jungles and hilly terrains of this region are conducive for safe movement of ultras.
If their plan to establish the ‘red corridor’ along Ganjam- Kandhamal-Boudh-undivided Sambalpur border succeeds, it will give them the much-needed passage between their bastions in Andhra and Chhattisgarh.
The Maoists have already established bases in Gajapati and Rayagada districts. They have now started their campaign with wall posters with a warning note for the sympathisers of local landlords, police and government in the inaccessible border areas of Ganjam-Kandhamal districts.
Police from both the districts have started joint combing operations along with the anti-Naxal squad. According to sources, the Naxals have slipped in to South Orissa after mounting pressures in the aftermath of an unsuccessful bid on the life of former AP chief minister N Janardhan Reddy.
All police stations in Ganjam district in this region have been put on high alert. Ganjam SP R K Sharma said extra patrolling and public relation drive in remote tribal pockets of the area have been taken up to keep tribals away from Maoist propaganda.
Trackback URL : http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEQ20070926030609&Page=Q&Headline=Now%2C+Maoists+take+new+roadmap&Title=ORISSA&Topic=0
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