According to the home ministry's figures India's Maoists, who have varying levels of influence in at least 10 states, have killed about 1,200 people since 2008.

Their stepped-up campaign of killings, abductions and raids on police stations is part of the Maoists' declared strategy of pursuing a people's war and installing a people's government through armed rebellion. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister Chidambaram have called the Maoists on several occasions "the gravest threat to India’s internal security."

Plans for a major offensive

It is against this backdrop that the government decided to launch its biggest coordinated offensive against them. "Operation Green Hunt", as the planned offensive was named, was expected to see some 75,000 federal paramilitary forces pumped into six districts in the worst hit states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Maharashtra initially from November onwards.

But the proposed operation has attracted criticism from rights groups, who say that the use of military power will further alienate the people in these areas. An armed confrontation, activists say, could further hurt marginalized and largely indigenous populations in the worst affected central and eastern Indian states.

Rights activist Seema Misra is happy the government has rethought its strategy. "It’s an absolutely welcome step,” says Misra, "and I hope the government is genuinely having a rethink and not just for show. Because what they were planning to do, 'Operation Green Hunt', is a war against its own people. How are you going to differentiate between Maoists and the people?"

Insurgents could 'melt away'

For now, the government will only assist states in their counter-insurgency measures. Ajay Sahni, a leading terrorism expert, is also a critic of 'Operation Green Hunt': "The whole idea was misconceived from the very outset and this is something we have emphasized repeatedly. That unless there is sufficient preparedness and sufficient generation of capacities to hold the Maoists down in all the areas of their activities, it is no use trying to direct extreme force against a narrow area where you think their leadership or their communal structure are present. Because they will simply melt away, they will walk away from the fight. They will not fight you in your areas of strength."

Federal and state authorities have been struggling to come up with a strategy to battle the guerrillas for years.

The Maoists say they are fighting for the rights of the rural poor, but officials accuse them of using intimidation and extortion to collect money and to control impoverished villagers. Little is known about the movement's leadership or its strength but it is said to number between 15,000 and 20,000 followers across the country.

In June, the government slapped a formal ban on the rebels, officially designating them terrorists, and last month it issued graphic advertising campaigns in newspapers to counter the propaganda of the Maoist insurgents. However, the government also appears to realize that it has to address some of the deep-seated grievances of the tribal communities.

Author: Murali Krishnan (New Delhi)
Editor: Grahame Lucas