Left-Wing Extremism — From Naxalbari to SAMADHAN

Why this matters now

LWE is one of the rare counter-insurgency campaigns in the world that has produced verifiable decline through combined security and development action. From 126 districts (2010) to 38 (2024) — and a 31 March 2026 deadline for full pacification announced by the Home Minister — the trajectory is now near complete. Three reasons it remains a core UPSC theme. First, the LWE arc covers the constitutional architecture of Schedule V (Scheduled Areas), the Forest Rights Act 2006, PESA 1996, and the Aspirational Districts Programme. Second, the security-development combination is the most successful Indian counter-insurgency model. Third, it integrates tribal welfare, forest rights, mining politics, and rural development — drawing on multiple syllabus areas at once.

Naxalbari 1967 — the origin

Naxalism began in May 1967 with the Naxalbari uprising in Darjeeling district, West Bengal. Led by Charu Majumdar, Kanu Sanyal, and Jangal Santhal — three CPI(Marxist) leaders who broke away to launch armed peasant struggle for land redistribution. They drew inspiration from Mao Zedong's protracted people's war and rural-based revolution.

The defining event: Naxalbari peasants seized landlord land; police fired on 25 May 1967, killing eleven including two children.

Organisational evolution

• 1969 — CPI(ML) — Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) formed by Charu Majumdar;
• 1970s — Multiple splits — People's War Group (PWG) in Andhra Pradesh under Kondapalli Seetharamaiah; Maoist Communist Centre (MCC) in Bihar/Jharkhand;
• 1980s-90s — Suppression in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh; movement shifted to forested tribal belts.

CPI (Maoist) — 21 September 2004

On 21 September 2004, PWG, MCC, and other splinter groups merged to form the Communist Party of India (Maoist) — the current dominant LWE organisation. CPI (Maoist) was banned under UAPA in 2009.

Philosophy:

• Protracted people's war;
• Eventual overthrow of the Indian state through a "New Democratic Revolution";
• Mobilisation of tribal and rural poor;
• Armed cadre.

At its 2010 peak, CPI (Maoist) had ~10,000 armed cadres and influence in ~200 districts. PM Manmohan Singh called it "India's single biggest internal security challenge" (April 2006).

The Red Corridor

The "Red Corridor" runs roughly from the Indo-Nepal border (Bihar, Jharkhand) south through Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha to the Andhra-Karnataka border.

Why this belt? Deep tribal population over-represented; forest cover provides guerrilla cover; mining regions (iron ore, coal, bauxite) became exploitation flashpoints; historic neglect by state apparatus; land alienation from tribals; Naxal organisational foothold from 1980s-90s.

Operation Green Hunt — 2009

Launched 2009 by the UPA government — joint coordinated paramilitary operation against CPI (Maoist) across the Red Corridor.

• Massive CRPF deployment (~80,000+ including specialised COBRA battalions — Commando Battalion for Resolute Action);
• State police, District Reserve Guards, special task forces;
• Joint operations in deep forest areas;
• Salwa Judum — controversial state-sponsored civilian militia in Chhattisgarh; declared illegal by SC in 2011 (Nandini Sundar v State of Chhattisgarh);
• Cumulative casualties: ~6,000+ Maoists killed; ~3,000+ security personnel killed since 1980.

SAMADHAN doctrine — 2017

Articulated by Home Minister Rajnath Singh in 2017. SAMADHAN expands as:

Elements:

• Unified Command — better Centre-state coordination;
• Intelligence — Joint Command Centres at state level;
• Technology — drones, surveillance cameras, satellite imaging, modern weapons;
• Development — Road construction (PMGSY-LWE), mobile towers, banking, bridges;
• Surrender & Rehabilitation policy;
• Choking finances — anti-money laundering action;
• Clear-Hold-Develop strategy.

Major Naxal attacks

• April 2010 — Dantewada, Chhattisgarh — 76 CRPF jawans killed; deadliest single attack;
• May 2013 — Jiram Ghati, Chhattisgarh — Congress political convoy attacked; 27 killed including senior Congress leaders Mahendra Karma, Vidya Charan Shukla, Nand Kumar Patel;
• March/April 2017 — Sukma — 12 + 25 CRPF jawans killed in two separate ambushes;
• April 2021 — Bijapur — 22 security personnel killed in ambush;
• April 2023 — Dantewada — IED blast killed 10 DRG jawans;
• April 2024 — Kanker — security forces killed 29 Maoists including senior cadre;
• 2024-25 ongoing — accelerated operations under "Operation Kagar".

Development response

• PMGSY-LWE — special road construction in LWE-affected districts; 12,000+ km built;
• Road Connectivity Project for LWE-affected Areas (RCPLWEA) 2016 — ₹11,500 crore for 5,400 km;
• Aspirational Districts Programme (2018) — 112 most-backward districts including most LWE-affected; scheme convergence, real-time monitoring, district rankings;
• Fortified police stations in LWE areas;
• Mobile towers — 6,000+ in LWE areas;
• Banking — branches, ATMs, banking correspondents in LWE districts;
• Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) for tribal areas;
• Ayushman Bharat health infrastructure in LWE districts;
• Forest Rights Act 2006 implementation;
• Surrender & Rehabilitation Policy — incentives, vocational training, livelihood support.

2010-2024 — the decline

Top leaders killed or arrested; many surrendered. Voter turnout in tribal areas in the 2024 Lok Sabha was unprecedentedly high — a key indicator of democratic engagement.

Path forward

• Complete pacification of Bastar by 2026 (Amit Shah target);
• Strengthen Forest Rights Act implementation for tribal rights;
• Improve last-mile delivery of welfare in tribal areas;
• Address displacement from mining and industrial projects with fair rehabilitation;
• Strengthen PESA 1996 (Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas);
• Tribal entrepreneurship via TRIBES INDIA, Van Dhan Vikas Kendras;
• Prevent resurgence through development continuity.

"The Maoist insurgency is the only major Indian counter-insurgency where the development arm has been as central as the security arm — and the decline arc is the result of both working together. The next decade is about preventing resurgence, not winning battles." — paraphrasing the Standing Committee on Home Affairs reports on LWE

UPSC PYQs and likely future questions

• 2018 GS-3: "Left Wing Extremism (LWE) is showing a downward trend, but still affects many parts of the country. Briefly explain the Government of India's approach to counter the challenges posed by LWE."
• 2020 GS-3: "What are the determinants of left-wing extremism in Eastern part of India? What strategy should Government of India, civil administration and security forces adopt to counter the threat?"
• 2023 GS-3: "Effective drone-borne weapons systems and improvised explosive devices are emerging as a key threat. How should India respond to these as part of its internal security strategy?"
• Likely 2026: "Examine the SAMADHAN doctrine and the role of the Aspirational Districts Programme in countering Left-Wing Extremism."
• Likely 2026: "Discuss the relationship between Forest Rights Act 2006 implementation and the decline of Left-Wing Extremism."

Related reading