Any keen
observer of Chhattisgarh could have foreseen Saturday’s deadly Maoist attack at
Jeeram ghat in Bastar, though not perhaps its magnitude. Mahendra Karma’s death was long expected,
though politicians like him who flirt with the dark side usually have enough
security to keep themselves safe. With a
string of killings of Maoist leaders under their belt, the security
establishment thought the Maoists could be written off. However, like other
insurgents elsewhere have always done, the Maoists scaled back only to strike
hard.
Calls for more concerted
military action ignore what has actually been happening. In fact, in recent
months, the security forces have ratcheted up operations, densely carpeting
Maoist strongholds with CRPF camps. In the 46 km stretch between Dornapal and
Chintalnar, there are now 7 camps, with the latest two, Burkapal and Minpa,
having come up in the last fortnight.
Overnight, large stretches of forest were cleared in Burkapal, for a helipad
on one side and a CRPF camp on the other, and the question of forest clearances
for this, or any other security installation, is never even seen as an issue.
The biodiverse forests of Bastar – which are national treasures - have been one
of the biggest casualties of this war, which rages across trees, roads, transformers,
schools and the bodies of men, women and even little children.
