CRPF for use of unmanned aircraft against Maoists

KORAPUT: Maoists are on the back foot in Jharkhand, Bihar and Odisha but there is need to contain the red rebels in Chhattisgarh, and if needed unmanned aircraft could be used to stike against them, a senior CRPF official said here today.

"Maoist situation in Jharkhand and Bihar is under control, but we need to check the Naxals in Chhattisgarh. If required, unmanned aircraft could be used in Chhattisgarh to target Maoists camps in deep forests," CRPF Director General Prakash Mishra said during his visit to the CoBRA battalion at Sunabeda in Koraput district.

According to the DG, Maoist activities in the country has drastically come down in past few months and in the coming few years the county will be free from naxal offensives.

Referring to Odisha, he said "Maoists activities in Odisha have been controlled to a great extent and the left-wing extremists are fast loosing their tribal support base in the state."

"While Naxal offensives in districts like Koraput, Malkangiri and Rayagada are on decline, their activities in districts like Kalahandi, Nuapada and Sambalpur need to be checked. Overall, the counter-insurgency operation in the state is satisfactory," he said.