Maoist killed in Encounter in Chhattisgarh | 06 Feb 2025
Why in News?
Recently, security forces killed a Maoist in an encounter in Chhattisgarh's Kanker district. The gunfight erupted in a forest along the Kanker-Narayanpur border during an anti-Naxal operation.
Key Points
- Anti-Naxal Operation:
- A joint team of District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Border Security Force (BSF) launched the operation based on intelligence inputs about the presence of Maoist cadres from the North Bastar and Maad divisions in the area.
- Since January 2025, 50 Maoists have been killed in separate encounters across Chhattisgarh.
- The Bastar division recorded the highest toll, with 34 Maoists killed.
- Annual Maoist Casualties:
- In 2024, security forces neutralized 219 Maoists in various encounters across the state.
District Reserve Guard (DRG)
- The District Reserve Guard (DRG) is a specialized police unit in Chhattisgarh, established in 2008 to combat Maoist violence.
- It consists of specially trained personnel operating in affected districts, conducting anti-Maoist operations, search and seizure, and gathering intelligence.
- The DRG collaborates with other security forces, like the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), to counter the Maoist insurgency.
Border Security Force (BSF)
- The BSF was raised in 1965, after the India-Pakistan war.
- It is one of the seven Central Armed Police Forces of the Union of India under the administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
- Other Central Armed Police Forces are: Assam Rifles (AR), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), National Security Guards (NSG) and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).
- The 2.65-lakh force is deployed along the Pakistan and Bangladesh borders.
- It is deployed on the Indo-Pakistan International Border, Indo-Bangladesh International Border, and Line of Control (LoC) along with the Indian Army and in Anti-Naxal Operations.
- BSF has been defending Sir Creek in the Arabian Sea and the Sundarbans delta in the Bay of Bengal with its state of the art fleet of Water Crafts.
- It contributes dedicated services to the UN peacekeeping Mission by sending a large contingent of its trained manpower every year.