Security forces pivot to bet on FOBs & mini-ops to breach Bastar in monsoon

Time of India

21-06-2025

Raipur: The dense, rain-soaked forests of Bastar, once a safe haven for Naxal insurgents during the monsoon, are no longer unmarked by the boots of security forces, say officials.
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This year, in a strategic pivot, anti-Naxal operations have gone into Monsoon Mode, with Forward Operating Bases (FOBs), drone surveillance, and night-vision technology powering an unrelenting campaign against Left-Wing Extremism (LWE).
Traditionally, the monsoon offered natural cover to Maoist groups, who capitalized on treacherous terrain and flooded streams to avoid detection. But in the past couple of years, things have changed, say officials.
CRPF's elite CoBRA units, DRG (District Reserve Guard), and the STF (Special Task Force) are now better equipped, both tactically and technologically and intel-wise, to navigate the jungle even during the harshest spells. "We're not letting up," said Bastar IG P Sundarraj, asserting that rainfall won't hinder operations. "Monsoon is no longer a lull season, it's now a high-opportunity window for us."
Govt's broader LWE eradication timeline aims to dismantle the Naxal presence by March 2026.
The monsoon, earlier considered an obstacle, is now a deliberate part of the strategy.
Security forces have marked success in recent joint operations in Indravati National Park and the Bijapur-Narayanpur axis, where multiple senior Maoist leaders were neutralized in early June. Maoists traditionally rely on low-intensity guerrilla warfare, exploiting the terrain to strike and retreat.
But with intelligence-based tracking, surveillance grids, and constant FOB patrols, their movements are increasingly being monitored and disrupted.
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The expansion of Forward Operating Bases deep in the forest interiors have enabled overnight stationing of forces close to Naxal hotspots.
Officials say night-vision-enabled reconnaissance and drone surveillance have offered real-time intelligence in zero-visibility conditions during an operation of more than a day.
And lastly, mini-surgical operations, swift, localized strikes based on precision inputs rather than large battalion movements have allowed forces to make in-roads.
Each base is equipped with logistics, medical support, and supply chains, ensuring sustained deployment even in areas cut off by swollen rivers or landslides. "The psychological pressure is now reversed," a senior CRPF officer revealed. "Earlier, we avoided deep jungles in the rains.
Now it's the Naxals who must stay on the run."
Recently, speaking to the press, CM Sai affirmed full state support for the intensified operations.
"This is a fight we must win, and every season is a battlefront. Our forces are empowered, and the state is with them, come rain or storm," he said.
What once was an off-season has become an opportunity. With year-round readiness and advanced technology, Operation Monsoon is redefining counterinsurgency in Bastar, an officer said. The message is loud and clear, "The war against Naxalism in Bastar no longer takes a weather break."
Speaking to TOI, Bastar range inspector general of police P Sundarraj said, "In the last couple of operational seasons, we have witnessed some very encouraging outcomes in our ongoing operations against Left-Wing Extremist (LWE) elements across the Bastar Range.
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"Thanks to the consistent efforts of our security forces, supported by accurate intelligence inputs and the strong cooperation of local communities, we've been able to neutralize several senior hardcore Maoist cadres including CPI Maoist General Secretary Basavaraju, recover weapons and ammunition, and dismantle key Maoist hideouts.
These achievements are the result of improved coordination between the State Police, Central Armed Police Forces, and the civil administration," he said.
As we enter into the 2025 monsoon season, which often poses operational challenges, we are fully geared up to continue the momentum. Our teams will carry out focused, intelligence-driven, area-specific operations with the same dedication, IG said. Community engagement, stepped-up vigilance, and outreach efforts in vulnerable areas will remain central to our strategy this season, the IG added.
Bastar range IG P Sundarraj further said that in the last monsoon, 28 encounters took place between security forces and Maoists, in which 66 Naxal bodies were recovered along with 100 weapons, besides, arrest of 316. About 349 had surrendered and 76 IED recovered.