With the State police and the BSF mounting heavy pressure on the Maoists in the Narayanpatna area of Koraput district, the left extremists are switching over to National Highways as the target of their attack.
Narayanpatna in Koraput which was a Maoist stronghold was earlier termed as lalgarh (West Bengal) of Odisha. There seems to be a change in the strategy of the ultras in the district as is evident from their targeting the Border Security Force (BSF) jawans on NH-26.
It had a surprise element for the top cops as the Maoists had never earlier tried to attack the Central police forces on an NH and had only adopted guerrilla warfare in the jungles. So, the police administration has to reorient its anti-Maoist strategies, feels a senior cop.
A meeting of the Unified Command held here under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary JK Mohapatra on Tuesday deliberated on this issue, said sources.
Till 2011, members of the Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangh (CMAS) with the active support from Maoists were able to organise mass rallies in Narayanpatna being armed with their traditional weapons and were able to create a sense of terror in the minds of public. They were paralysing the general administration by felling trees on various occasions, blasting mobile towers, etc.
However, the police along with the BSF mounted pressure on the CMAS and Maoists, for which 70 CMAS leaders and activists were arrested. The killing of Telli Kadraka, who was involved in a number of murders, also resulted in a decline of the left extremist activities
More than 2,000 CMAS activists have surrendered during this year. Now, there is no road blockade, no mobile tower blast and no such other activity and there is a situation of stability and peace in Naraynapatna. This has prompted the Maoists to reorient their strategies and target NHs, pointed out a senior cop. And the NH-26 is in dire straits though it serves as the lifeline for the areas of Koraput, Sunabeda, Semiliguda, Pottangi, Borigumma and Sunki and connects the remotest part of Koraput with the urban zones like Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Jagdalpur and Raipur in Chhattisgarh.
Thanks to the callous attitude of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), the NH-26 is nothing but a death trap with potholes and roads virtually nonexistent for miles and miles from Potangi to Sunki. The Maoists took advantage of the situation and attacked the BSF jawans who were on their way to Visakhapatnam.
It was, therefore, decided at the Unified Command meeting to keep vigil on the NH-26 and the State Government will be pressing hard with the NHAI authorities to maintain this highway properly, said sources.