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Cameras to snoop on naxals in Jharkhand

Devesh K. Pandey

Jawans vulnerable to landmine attack in hilly terrain and thick forest: CRPF
2,000-strong task force a la Andhra Pradesh’s Greyhound being raised

RANCHI : Intensifying their anti-naxal campaign, the Jharkhand police will install video cameras for surveillance in the Parasnath Hills, where an operation, carried out in coordination with the Central Reserve Police Force, unearthed a base of the outfit this January.

The cost-effective video cameras, to be put at vantage points in the thick forest, will have an in-built mechanism to automatically transmit footage to the central monitoring system, giving ample time for the police to chalk out an action plan if they spot any naxal activity.

Through heavy deployment and regular combing operations, the police are preparing to sanitise the region, a Jain pilgrimage centre.

Also, a special task force, on the lines of Andhra Pradesh’s “Greyhound,” is being raised specifically to fight naxalism, which has gained ground in 18 of the 24 districts, said Director-General of Police Vishnu Dayal Ram.

The 2,000-strong task force would be fully equipped for conducting operations in inhospitable terrain of the State that has in the recent years seen a steep rise in naxal violence owing to underdevelopment and apathy on the part of the State administration to basic requirements of the people.

Another plan was to increase the strength of police stations falling under the naxal-affected zones and raise battalions of former servicemen. A jungle warfare training school was also being set up.

One more CRPF battalion was recently sanctioned by the Centre. Mr. Ram claimed the administration now had an upper hand over the naxals, thanks to intensive operations conducted by the police and paramilitary force.

In 2007, 478 incidents were reported in which 175 civilians were killed and on 14 occasions trains were targeted. The naxals staged 60 encounters with the police and the CRPF last year. Till February this year, 58 incidents were reported, 15 encounters conducted and 19 extremists killed. The forces were successful in preventing any attack on trains. In all, 14 civilians have been killed in naxal attacks in the past two months.

Coordination pays

While police officers attributed this success to the coordination between them and the paramilitary force, CRPF spokesperson Ajay Chaturvedi said, “The same level of coordination should be there in the other States also.”

On the problems on the ground, CRPF officers said the hilly terrain and thick forest, which were being used by the naxals as their hideouts, were a big hurdle. “Our jawans have to walk for miles as there are no proper roads. And the chances of their being targeted by landmines are imminent, especially as the naxals here have gained expertise in manufacturing and planting multiple, improvised explosive devices,” said a police officer.

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