In what can be termed as a significant milestone achieved by the security forces, fighting a prolonged battle with the Left Wing Extremism (LWE) across Bharat, the national flag was unfurled for the first time in the Maoist stronghold of Puvarti village in Sukma after four decades on Sunday, February 18.
The development occurred a day after the security forces established a Forward Operating Base (FOB) cum Tactical headquarters in the Puvarti village amidst strong resistance by the insurgents on Friday, February 16. The strategic camp at Puvarti has been established amidst the exchange of fire with the extremist which attracted heavy retaliation by the forces, informed an official of Chhattisgarh police.
Surrounded by dense forests and mountains, Puvarti is a remote village under the Jagargunda police station limits of Sukma which is situated around 150 km from the district headquarters, the village is home to the notorious Maoist commander Madavi Hidma, a former commander of the Peoples Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA) battalion no 01, the strongest unit of the armed wing of outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist).
Additionally, the alleged headquarters of the insurgents, Puvarti is also home to Deva Barse, the incumbent commnader of PLGA, battalion no 1, who recently replaced Madavi Hidma, when the latter was promoted to the Central Committee of the Maoist in January this year.
Notably, while Hidma is considered the mastermind of several deadly attack on the security forces including the Minpa, Burkapaal, and the infamous Tadmetla attack, where as many as 76 security personnel were martyred in the year 2010, Barse Deva is reported to be the man behind the recently occurred Tekalguda attack in which as many as three security personnel lost their lives following a massive attack on the forces in January.
The village is also associated with Hemla Vinod an alleged mastermind of the Jhiram Ghati massacare, where many top leaders of the Congress party including Mahendra Karma, a tall political figure in Bastar was brutally killed following the Maoist launched a well-planned attack on their convoy.
https://twitter.com/sukmapolice/status/1759061558708289742?t=aPlufragfqtLP_mC4IIsmA&s=08
Interacting with the media after the establishment of the camp in Puvarti, Superintendent of Police (SP), Sukma, Kiran Chauhan informed that more than 100 people from the village have been working on different position in the Maoist outfit that include the former and incumbent commander of the PLGA battalion no 01, the security forces has been camping in the village from the last 48 hours and have exchange of fire with the extremist for 7 times in between.
The village has been a strong base of the Maoist and the camp established here will be the tactical headquarters of the forces in the battle against the Maoist further, added SP Sukma who also met with the mother of Maoist leader Hidma and assured her that the government is committed to extend the benefits of welfare schemes to the villagers.
Security Camps in South Bastar region
It is to be noted that the security forces in recent months have established dozens of FOBs or security camps in the core Maoist zone of Bijapur and Sukma, a region dominated by the extremists for decades. Out of these camps as many as 14 camps have only been established in the last two months alone. This includes the strategic Tekalguda camp only 5km away from the Puvarti village where the security forces have established a new FOB on Friday.
The camps at Tekalguda and Puvarti are strategically important given the fact that the region has been considered the ‘safe zone’ for Maoist and every attempt of the security forces to penetrate in the region in the past was met with a fierce resistance from the Ultras. In fact, the Maoist had also launched a massive attack on the forces when the latter were indulged in establishing a FOB in Tekalguda.
सुकमा पुलिस ने आज साउथ कमांड के प्रभारी एवं सेंट्रल समिति के सदस्य हिड्मल @हिड़मा के निवास के गांव पुवर्ती में सुरक्षा कैम्प स्थापित कर नक्सलियों पर एक मनोवैज्ञानिक जीत हासिल की है जिसके लिए सुरक्षा बल बधाई के पात्र हैं।#maoist #hidmal #puvarti
— RK Vij (@ipsvijrk) February 17, 2024
The attack includes of hundreds of armed cadres of the CPI Maoist armed with sophisticated weapons such as snipers and grenades launcher which resulted in the martyrdom of three personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and injuries to as many as 14 personnel. Though, the vigilant personnel at the camp not only successfully dealt with the attack and held their position but also managed to neutralise as many as half a dozen Maoist in the retaliatory firing.
Government launched “Niyad Nellanaar” scheme
It is worth mentioning here that the establishment of these FOBs in bordering areas of Bijapur and Sukma have occurred at a time when the state government in a significant move has also launched the Niyad Nellanaar (Yours good village) scheme aimed at providing benefits of government schemes and basic facilities to the residents of these insurgency-hit regions.
Announcing the flagship scheme of the State government Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on February 14 had remarked that the scheme will benefit the villages which lies around the 5km range of each security camps established in the Maoist infested regions.
“A number of security camps are being established in these areas, recently as many as 14 camps have been established, the goal of this scheme is to cover as many as villages in the 5km radius of a security camp and provide facilities pertaining to government schemes to the residents”, remarked CM Sai while interacting with the media on February 14 at State’s capital Raipur.
Notably, the security forces in the recent few years have tightened the grip in the regions earlier infested by left wing insurgency across Bharat. This includes establishing firm control in Budha Pahad region of Jharkhand, a region dominated by the Ultras for around three decades, curbing the insurgency in Swabhiman Anchal region of Odisha and establishing more than 50 camps in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar division.
The simultaneous development in a number of States earlier infested by insurgency has resulted in the weakening of the Maoist outfit’s grip on a larger geographical stretch (Red Corridor) earlier dominated by the extremist where they also used to run their parallel government known as the Jantana Sarkar.
It is pertinent to mention here that the recent success of the security forces has also been persistently highlighted by the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who at a number of public meetings in recent months has vowed to eradicate the left wing insurgency from Bharat within a span of next three years.
