Anti-Naxal forces sealing Orissa boarder before operations in four states

BHUBANESWAR: As the D-day is drawing near for a protracted battle between armed forces and Maoists in five states, the anti-Naxalite Task force has decided to seal the Orissa boarder first so that the ultras hiding either in the state jungles cannot escape nor from other states can enter. Some five battalion central forces have been sent to the state for the purpose, sources said.

The union home ministry is said to be quite worried due to the easy way, the Naxals operate in Malkanigir, Koraput, Raygada, Gajapati, Sundergarh and Mayurbhanj districts indicating little control by the state police.

By sealing the boarders of Orissa, the Taskforce will ensure that Naxals do not get a chance to use the remote inaccessible terrains of tribal-dominated districts for either escaping to other states or fortify them for protracted guerilla warfare. Once the boarder is sealed, some 60,000 central and state forces would begin operations in Chatisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Bihar at one go.

The union home ministry also has advised the state police to remain vigilant to ensure that the Naxals do not manage to escape to other interior districts like, Kandhamal, Nayagarh, Jajpur and Kenonjhar.

Pooice sources here concede that there will an alarming rise in the causalities among the civilians, militant and security personnel in Naxalite-affected this year with the Task Force hell bent to put an end to Maoist menace.
The Maoist-affected regions had more casualties (1,125) last year than even the militancy-hit Northeast (877) and Jammu and Kashmir (381).

Union home minister, Mr P Chidmbaram will hold a meeting in Calcutta with the chief ministers of rebel-hit Bengal, Orissa, Jharkhand and Bihar on February 9 to review intra-state and inter-state operations against the rebels.