NAXAL-FREE-INDIA

NEWS: Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has officially stated that India has achieved its target of becoming Naxal-free

KEY DATA

• Total LWE-affected districtsà fell from 126 in 2014 to approximately 7 by early 2026.
• Only 3 districts remain in the “most affected” category – Bijapur, Sukma, and Narayanpur= all in Chhattisgarh.
• 31 districtsà classified as “Legacy and Thrust” districtsà violence has ended but continuous state support remains essential to prevent relapse.
• Total annual deaths dropped by 90%, from 1,005 in 2010 to 100 in 2025.

Factors Driving Successful LWE Eradication

• Elite units like COBRA and Greyhoundsà used Company Operating Bases to seize the insurgents’ traditionally inaccessible “liberated zones.”
• The construction of 12,000 km of all-weather roadsà dismantled the geographical isolation that sheltered rebel units.
• Over 9,000 mobile towers delivering 4G services neutralised Maoist propagandaà by connecting remote tribal populations to the national digital narrative.
• Systematic asset seizures by the NIA and Enforcement Directorate choked the “urban nexus” and internal funding channels.
• The Surrender-cum-Rehabilitation policyà incentivised over 10,000 cadres since 2014 to defect by offering immediate cash grants and long-term vocational training.
• Eklavya Schools+ Aspirational District projects àreplaced the Maoist “Janatana Sarkar” (parallel government) with visible, functional state services.

Challenges

• Guerrilla Residualsà Highly mobile “hardcore” splinter cells remain embedded in the Abujhmaad forest in Chhattisgarh= threat of high-impact asymmetric strikes.
• Neutralising underground urban networks àcomplex intelligence task= groups pivot from armed conflict to ideological subversion.
• Forward Operating Basesàlogistically expensive to sustain
• The lack of local value-added industries for forest produce could drive unemployed youth back into militancy.
• Porous inter-state boundaries continue to offer tactical ‘safe zones’ for fleeing cadres

Initiatives taken

• Kaushal Vikas Yojanaàestablished 46 ITIs and 49 Skill Development Centres in LWE districts to provide youth with immediate employment linkages.
• Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DA-JGUA)àsaturating over 63,000 tribal villages with 25 key interventions to achieve 100% coverage in housing, water, and electricity.
• PM-JANMAN àtargets 75 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) =basic infrastructure and healthcare in the most remote habitations.
• Civic Action Programme (CAP)à funded security forces to distribute essential supplies and medical aid.
• Van Dhan Vikas Kendra (VDVK)à established over 2,200 clusters for processing minor forest produce to ensure tribal communities receive fair market value.
• The 4G Saturation Planàmobile towers to ensure that even the deepest forest habitations are connected to the national digital grid.