42,000 sq. km Bastar region largely free from LWE influence; IEDs remain a challenge

From tracking the movement of security teams out on patrol with satellite-enabled navigation devices and ensuring communication through satellite phones, to opening new security camps in the so-called liberated zones in the Bastar division of Chhattisgarh, the State Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) followed a clear strategy to declare the 42,000 sq. km area “Maoist-free” by March 31, a deadline set by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on August 24, 2024.

The number of districts affected by left-wing extremism, often referred to as the red corridor, has shrunk from 126 districts across Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh in 2014 to just two districts — Bijapur and Sukma (in Chhattisgarh) — in 2026. In 2005 the number of affected districts stood at around 230. Many districts were reorganised in the following years.

Bihar, Maharashtra (barring one district), Jharkhand, and Odisha had already been declared free of Maoist activities before 2024, Home Minister Amit Shah informed the Lok Sabha on March 30. Bastar was one of the regions worst affected by left-wing extremism.

The Minister said that the number of police stations in the country which recorded Maoist incidents came down to 60 in 2026 from 350 in 2014. According to the annual report of the Home Ministry for 2005-06, the number of such police stations stood at 460 in 2005.

Sundarraj P., Inspector-General of Police, Bastar Range, told The Hindu that as new security camps were opened in Bastar, the influence of the Maoists dwindled. “The movement of each patrol team was tracked through GPS devices. To tide over connectivity issues in the interior, satellite phones were used. If a team came under fire, the reinforcements were sent from the nearest camp. The change in strategy helped in bringing down the number of casualties, unlike earlier when teams were out patrolling for two or three days; it was like shooting in the dark,” the officer said.

The Home Minister said that in the past six years, 406 new Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) camps and 68 night landing helipads were built in areas affected by left-wing extremism. As many as 400 bullet-proof and blast-proof vehicles were also provided to jawans.

Data show that in Bastar alone, out of the 432 security camps set up since 2001, 168 were established between 2001 and 2014, while 264 camps were established between 2015 and 2026. Bijapur and Sukma, the only two districts that have some presence of Maoist activity, account for 50% of the total such camps.

According to the Bastar Police Action and Outcome Report, security camps are no longer limited to troop deployment but operate as Integrated Development Centres, helping extend governance, welfare schemes, and essential services to previously inaccessible villages. The expansion of these camps is described as central to restoring territorial control and public trust.

Mr. Sundarraj said that though the area had been almost cleared of the presence of Maoists, with the exception of seven or eight cadres, the challenge posed by Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) remained. “We will take some time to de-mine the areas and declare them free of IEDs that may have been planted by the Maoists before they deserted their camps or surrendered,” Mr. Sundarraj said.

According to the Home Ministry, since 2010, there have been 1,754 attacks on “economic infrastructure” such as roads, telecom networks, schools and other infrastructure to keep populations isolated from the mainstream and prevent governance outreach.

While 1,141 attacks on economic infrastructure were reported between 2010 to 2014, as many as 613 such attacks were reported from 2015 to 2025.

Mr. Sundarraj said that the incidents of Maoists damaging infrastructure had decreased significantly, with only two incidents of damage to mobile phone towers reported in 2025.