8 Feb :As the government is grappling with the naxal menace, latest official statistics show an alarming lethal firepower of the Left wing extremists who carry out 100 landmine explosions every year.
A high-powered government panel has observed that the threat from the maoists has increased due to their increasing militarisation, acquisition of sophisticated firearms and access to technology of fabricating rockets and rocket launchers, besides expertise in Improvised Explosive Devices.
Citing several instances, the panel says IEDs have come to be used by the Naxalites for well-planned attacks on even high-security personalities apart from other targets like police stations and security vehicles.
The lethality of attacks on security forces and the large number of fatalities were demonstrated in Chhattisgarh when 24 CRPF personnel were killed when a mine-protected vehicle was blown up in Dantewada district in the recent past.
Last week, 15 policemen were killed by the Naxals in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra.Shaken by the spurt in naxal attacks, the Union Home Ministry is planning an all-out simultaneous operation in all Naxal-affected states, with special focus on Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra – the core area of the Maoists.