Orissa, Madhya Pradesh hike alert near Chhattisgarh

BHUBANESWAR/BHOPAL - Security forces intensified combing operations along the Orissa-Chhattisgarh border and increased patrolling in Madhya Pradesh’s areas close to Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra Wednesday, a day after Maoists massacred 76 paramilitary troopers in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district, officials said.

“The area where Maoists launched their attack in Chhattisgarh Tuesday is located about 30-40 km from the border of Orissa’s Malkangiri district,” Deputy Inspector General of Orissa Police Sanjeeb Panda told IANS.

“In view of that, all the police stations and camps in the district have been asked to be on maximum alert,” he said.

“We are in regular touch with the police and paramilitary forces in Chhattisgarh and the information sharing has been strengthened,” he said.

Maoists are active in more than half of Orissa. Malkangiri district, bordering Chhattisgarh, is considered their stronghold.

In Madhya Pradesh, patrolling has been intensified in Maoist-infested districts Balaghat, Mandla and Dindori, bordering Chhattisgarh.

“An alert has been sounded in Rewa, Balaghat and Shahdol ranges. Police officials in these zones have been asked to maintain extra vigil,” Inspector General (Law and Order) A.K. Soni told IANS.

A state intelligence officer said: “We have been vigilant since October 2009 when there were reports of over 50 Naxalites (Maoists) sneaking into Balaghat district, from Rajnandangaon in Chhattisgarh and Gondia in Maharashtra.”

“We have further increased vigil and intensified patrolling in areas close to Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra,” he said.

Seventy-six Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers were killed Tuesday when several hundred Maoists trapped them on a hilly stretch in Dantewada district. The guerrillas went on a killing spree using pressure bombs and automatic weapons.