Naxals attack ITBP camp in Chhattisgarh

Naxals fired rockets and opened heavy gunfire at a camp of paramilitary ITBP in Kondagaon district of Chhattisgarh in the wee hours on Thursday.

The Maoists attacked a camp of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force in restive Bastar region of Chhattisgarh on Wednesday night, second such attempt in a month.

“The Maoists attacked Ranapal ITBP camp situated on the border of Kondagon and Narayanpur district on Wednesday night. Nearly 20 Maoists carried out the attack,” Kondagan district SP Santosh Singh said.

No casualty

There was no casualty or injury to anyone on the ITBP side, however, the attack signals towards a change in strategy of the Maoists who have rarely targeted the security force camps in Bastar in the past.

Last month, a major attack was launched on Mirtoor camp in Bijapur district and all entry points were ambushed by the Maoists.

“Yesterday’s [Wednesday] attack was not as big as Bijapur attack. Only 15-20 Maoists were present near the camp but the back to back attacks on the security camps are a cause of concern,” said another officer posted in Bastar.

As a part of a strategy to restrict Maoists’ movements, many new camps have been set up in interior areas of Bastar in the past few years but the rebels desisted from attacking these camps as they are well-guarded and each camp houses 200 to 250 jawans.

But two attacks on security camps within a month are bound to cause some panic in the counter-insurgency setup of the government.