Villagers help anti-Maoist operations in jungles

Bhubaneswar(visakeo)While the Superintendents of Police of Berhampur, Ganjam and Kandhamal are engaged in combat operations against the Maoists, the Collectors are not left behind. This time, villagers are also keeping a vigil on the movement of the extremists, thanks to the initiatives of the Collectors of Ganjam and Kandhamal, V Karthikeyan Pandian and Manish Kumar Verma, respectively.

According to sources, while Pandian is camping near Gelari on the border of Ganjam, Verma is also moving in the routes covered by the Maoists in the Tikabali and Chakapad areas. While the SOG, Grey Hound and CRPF commandos are engaged in fierce fights with the powerfully armed Maoists, the Collectors are taking the help of the common men as vigilant citizens.

All the routes leading to the jungles of Gasama, where the Maoists are hiding, are being covered by people connected with mobile telephones. The movement of the Maoists are being watched and reported back to the authorities, said a source.

This is a new method of collecting information, as the mobiles are providing the scope for connectivity in these far-flung areas, said a senior officer.

Villagers are angry with the Maoists because they killed innocent persons in the bordering Nayagarh district. They are out to support the district administration and the police authorities in their anti-Maoist operations. According to the sources, vital information is percolating, which is beneficial to the combat forces.

The SOG, Grey Hound and CRPF commandos are combing the jungles from three sides. The commandos are approaching from Gelari and Soroda side of Ganjam district, while another lot is approaching from Tikabali in Kandhamal district.

Home Secretary TK Mishra on Sunday said 20 Maoists and three SOG personnel were killed, though Intelligence sources say the casualty figure of the Maoists is more than 26. However, the bodies of the Maoists are vanishing as soon as they are killed, because the Maoists are not allowing their dead comrades to be identified by the police and parade the bodies.

Villagers inside the forests say the Maoists are facing difficult times due to attacks on all the sides of the jungle. While Director, Intelligence MM Praharaj and SOG chief are masterminding the entire operations, IG Operations SS Hansda is coordinating the exercise.

DIG Southern Range RP Koche, Ganjam SP S Dev Dutt Singh, Berhampur SP Nitinjit Singh and Kandhamal SP Nikhil Kumar Kanodia are in the forefront of the operations.

Apart from guiding the entire operations, DGP GC Nanda is busy preparing an Integrated Security Plan for the Maoist-prone areas, which has received the green signal from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.