Into the Red Corridor

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Maoists raise their weapons during an exercise at a temporary base in the forests of Abujhmad in Chhattisgarh. PHOTO: AP

A RECENT visit to the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, near Pune, after two decades, turned out to be a huge surprise. On the Pashan route a vast area stretching up to about 10 km from the Pashan Gate where cadets did route marches and map-reading is now completely urbanised. Beginning with a few exclusive farmhouses, residential complexes, markets, malls, clubs etc. have completely transformed the landscape. So is the case with Indian Military Academy, Dehra Dun, and many of the Army’s training areas used for training not involving firing of large or medium guns and rockets.
The Army’s added commitment to counter-terrorism operations necessitates more training establishments on the lines of the Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School (CIJWS), Vairengte, Mizoram. CIJWS is considered one of the world’s leading anti-terrorist institutions. It became a sought-after destination for the US Army following the 9/11 attacks and was the only one in India located far east. However, the next one in Jammu and Kashmir got further dispersed as corps battle schools for corps located in the northern and western sectors. These have also been training paramilitary and police personnel whenever and as many sent by their respective forces. While most of these battle schools are in mountainous terrain or plains, the Army had requested for yet another training area for jungle warfare (apart from CIJWS) over a decade ago.
In 2010, 25km by 25km of land at the edge of Abujhmad Forest was sanctioned to the Army which had projected a requirement of 40km by 40km. The headquarters, Chhattisgarh, and Orissa sub-area was raised at Raipur for smooth administration during training. While the timing and location of this allotment are significant in view of the Maoist hold over the region, sources in the Army say that the allotment was awaited and that it has, only coincidentally, come recently. This is not altogether without precedent, as during World War II, in 1942, XV Corps HQ was moved to Ranchi to raise and train fresh divisions for later combat in Burma. Ramgarh in Jharkhand (earlier a part of Bihar) became the major training ground for Allied forces in the same theatre.
For the first time in April, 2008, Chhattisgarh completed a survey of the thickly-forested area of Abujhmad, located in the state’s southern region of Bastar. The aerial survey of 237 villages in Abujhmad, was done purely for revenue purposes as the government had earlier not managed to find access there. Mughal emperor Akbar, who last tried to survey Abujhmad for the purposes of revenue collection, abandoned the effort after finding it nearly impossible. Spread over about 4,000 sq km, Abujhmad is reportedly a stronghold of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist) that runs dozens of training camps there. The forests also reportedly serves as a hideout for frontline Maoist leadership. Maps of the forest are being prepared with the help of the photographs taken during the survey. With Maoists dominating the area, the ground survey will be a tough assignment, to say the least.
The massacre of over 100 paramilitary personnel in Chhattisgarh alone (including 27 of the CRPF in Narayanpur) in 2010 evoked national outrage and distress calls were made to deploy the Army alongside the paramilitary forces.
Quite obviously piqued at the Army moving into what is reported to be also a hideout of its leaders, Maoist spokesperson Guda Usendi said in a press release that the Union government was preparing to use the Army to wage a war on its own people, adding that “this deployment would eventually result in the imposition of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in Chhattisgarh” and lead to a “civil war” in Central India. The Maoists also questioned the right of the government to hand over tribal land to the Army and called upon some organisations to oppose the move. On February 3, Maoists in Chhattisgarh announced that one of their 11 conditions for the release of five policemen in their captivity since January 25 was that the government gives up its plan to set up the Army’s training centre in Abhujmad. The Army has categorically stated that it is neither going to get involved in anti-left wing extremist operations, nor will it pitch for the Disturbed Area Act or the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in the area. At a press conference on January 14, Army Chief Gen. V.K. Singh stated that the Army was “neither operating in the area nor seeking protection under the AFSPA”. The Army has also clarified that there will be no permanent presence of any troops except those units which will come for training and that the training will not involve any live firing. It has, however, sought clarifications from the appropriate authorities in the government on the rules of engagement, legal aspects and the right of retaliation in the event of any of its detachments being attacked by Maoists. Lieutenant-General V.K. Ahluwalia, GOC-in-C, central command, under which this area comes, told the media that the Chhattisgarh government offered land to the Army and reiterated that it is for training purposes only. When asked how the Army would react if the outlaws attacked the training facility, he said the Army knew how to deal with such situations. While the sanction of land long sought after by the Army for yet another training area was accorded recently, there is no doubt about two major aspects. The first that it is going to be a challenging process for the Army to establish itself in this area as it needs a lot of development of infrastructure by way of roads and buildings and the fact that it is dominated by well-armed and desperate Maoist terrorists. Both the Central and state governments have to be very clear about the Army’s need to protect itself against attacks. In the past couple of years there have been instances of IAF helicopters, ferrying election officials, being fired at by Maoist terrorists and being hit too. Initially the air crew’s only protective measures were bullet-proof jackets, at the most side-arms/pistols and ironically, “evasive flying”. It took the government some prodding to accept the fact that the air crew must be adequately armed to protect themselves and the aircraft from terrorists firing with sophisticated weapons. The other aspect is absolutely positive. The Army’s presence is going to improve life for the locals in a number of ways. It will provide employment and business for many who are impoverished and have been living in conditions of poor or no communication and scarce resources.
Interacting with this newspaper, Brigadier B.K. Ponwar (Retd), director, Counter-Terrorism and Jungle Warfare (CTJW) College at Kanker, and security adviser to the Chattisgarh government, said, “This will be the first time that any sizeable strength of the Army moves into this region. The deployments will indeed open up the region to the outside world. Purchase of local materials and supplies will bring in jobs and finance to cash-strapped villages. The Army’s presence will not only bring a feeling of security to the village, but will also be a psychological advantage over the Naxals who will be very worried that the tiger is sitting outside their den.”
A very important long-standing requirement which it becomes relevant to stress upon again, is that the police and paramilitary forces like the CRPF operating in this region need to be highly trained, motivated and equ-ipped.
The state police needs to drastically add numbers to their ranks so that the pathetically low policeman-to-population ratio is raised to an appropriate level. It must be ensured that both the state police and CRPF units are inducted after undergoing the very necessary training imparted at existing training institutions so that there is no need at all to resort to falling back on the option of using, or rather misusing, the Army.

Anil Bhat, a retired Army officer, is a defence and security analyst based in New Delhi