Maoists change tack

MALKANGIRI: The daring landmine blast triggered by Maoists here on Wednesday which killed 17 SOG jawans and the meticulous ambush of the Greyhounds commandos, the elite anti-Naxalite force of Andhra Pradesh, by them on June 29 in the Balimela reservoir indicate the shift in tack by the Left-wing ultras. Experts say they have moved over guerrilla warfare and entered a phase of ‘mobile warfare’ which is marked by sudden and daring attacks on anti-Naxal forces.

The ambush took place on the fourth day of the Maoistdeclared Anti-repression Week from June 26 to July 2 and around 36 Greyhound commandos were killed. Undoubtedly, the incident reflects strong support base of the CPI(Maoists) and the State Government’s failure to provide basic amenities to the tribal people residing on the other side of the reservoir.

The CPI (Maoists) took a decision at their ninth Congress in January 2007 to change the strategy from present guerrilla warfare to ‘mobile warfare’. It is learnt that since then the Maoists have effected many changes in their strategy to counter the security personnel. Ambush attack on police has replaced ‘planned guerrilla attack’, a report reveals.

The Maoist cadres were in fact looking for an opportunity to demoralise the Greyhound commandos by carrying out a major attack so that they can send a clear message to the Centre that military approach cannot resolve the decade-long vexed issue, a police officer told to this paper.

In the past three months, Maoists have killed more than 10 persons by branding them as police informers in Malkangiri district alone. The State Government recently admitted that 15 out of 30 revenue districts of the State have been affected by some degree of Naxal violence.

The special branch entrusted with the responsibility of intelligence gathering has always failed in giving prior information about Naxal attacks, experts said. The 2004 Naxal attack in Koraput, the 2006 Naxal attack in R.Udaygiri, the 2008 Nayagarh mayhem, the recent attack on AP Greyhounds and today’s attack on SOG jawans only showcased the intelligence failure