Operation Green Hunt: Difference between revisions

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}

{{Use Indian English|date=May 2021}}

| date              = September 2009<ref name="TH-101706"/> – ''present''<br />({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=09|year1=2009}})

| status            = Ongoing

* {{flagicon image|इंडियन-आर्म्ड-फोर्सेज.png}} [[Indian Armed Forces]]

| commander1        = {{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Ram Nath Kovind]]<br />([[President of India|President]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Narendra Modi]]<br />([[Prime Minister of India|Prime Minister]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Amit Shah]]<br />([[Minister of Home Affairs (India)|Minister of Home Affairs]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[S. Jaishankar|Subrahmanyam Jaishankar]]<br />([[Ministry of External Affairs (India)|Ministry of External Affairs]])<br />{{flagicon image|CRPF Flag.svg}} Kuldiep Singh<br />([[Director General]]) <br />{{flagicon image|Flag COAS.svg}} [[Manoj Mukund Naravane]]<br />([[Chief of the Army Staff (India)|Chief of the Army Staff]])<br />{{flagicon image|Naval Ensign_of India.svg}} [[Karambir Singh]]<br />([[Chief of the Naval Staff (India)|Chief of the Naval Staff]])<br />{{flagicon image|Air Force Ensign_of India.svg}} [[Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria]]<br />([[Chief of the Air Staff (India)|Chief of the Air Staff]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Rajnath Singh]]<br />([[Minister of Defence (India)|Minister of Defence]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Ajay Kumar (civil servant)|Ajay Kumar]]<br />([[Defence Secretary (India)|Defence Secretary]])<br />{{flagicon image|Flag of Chief of Defence Staff (India).svg}} [[Bipin Rawat]]<br />([[Chief of Defence Staff (India)|Chief of Defence Staff]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Draupadi Murmu]]<br />([[List of governors of Jharkhand|Governors of Jharkhand]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Hemant Soren]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Jharkhand|Chief Minister of Jharkhand]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Phagu Chauhan]]<br />([[List of governors of Bihar|Governor of Bihar]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Nitish Kumar]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Bihar|Chief Minister of Bihar]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Anusuiya Uikey]]<br />([[List of governors of Chhattisgarh|Governor of Chhattisgarh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Bhupesh Baghel]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Chhattisgarh|Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Ganeshi Lal]]<br />([[List of governors of Odisha|Governors of Odisha]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Naveen Patnaik]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Odisha|Chief Minister of Odisha]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Arif Mohammad Khan]]<br />([[List of governors of Kerala|Governor of Kerala]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Pinarayi Vijayan]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Kerala|Chief Minister of Kerala]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Biswabhusan Harichandan]]<br />([[List of governors of Andhra Pradesh|governors of Andhra Pradesh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh|Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Tamilisai Soundararajan]]<br />([[List of governors of Telangana|Governor of Telangana]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[K. Chandrashekar Rao]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Telangana|Chief Minister of Telangana]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Bhagat Singh Koshyari]]<br />([[List of governors of Maharashtra|Governor of Maharashtra]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Uddhav Thackeray]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Maharashtra|Chief Minister of Maharashtra]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Anandiben Patel]]<br />([[List of governors of Uttar Pradesh|Governors of Uttar Pradesh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Yogi Adityanath]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh|Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Jagdeep Dhankhar]]<br />([[List of governors of West Bengal|Governor of West Bengal]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Mamata Banerjee]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of West Bengal|Chief Minister of West Bengal]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Anandiben Patel]]<br />([[List of governors of Madhya Pradesh|Governor of Madhya Pradesh]])<br />{{flagicon|India|22px}} [[Shivraj Singh Chouhan]]<br />([[List of chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh|Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh]])

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Pranab Mukherjee]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[A. K. Antony]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Arun Jaitley]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Manohar Parrikar]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Nirmala Sitharaman]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Pradeep Kumar (civil servant)|Pradeep Kumar]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Shashi Kant Sharma]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[R. K. Mathur]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[G. Mohan Kumar]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Sanjay Mitra (civil servant)|Sanjay Mitra]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[K. Sankaranarayanan]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[M. O. H. Farook]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Syed Ahmed (politician)|Syed Ahmed]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Nikhil Kumar]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Sheila Dikshit]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[P. Sathasivam]]

|{{flagdeco|India|size=23px}} [[Kamal Nath]]

| commander2        = {{flagicon image|South Asian Communist Banner.svg}} [[Muppala Lakshmana Rao|Ganapathy]]

| strength1        = {{•}} [[Paramilitary]] personnel: 100,000{{cn|date=July 2020}} + 10,000<ref name="SATP-2013"/> + 10,000<ref name="TH-6107418"/> <br />{{•}} Indian Reserve Battalions: [[Naga Regiment|Naga Battalions]]' 2,000 personnel<ref name="ET–40383919"/> <br />{{•}} [[State Armed Police Forces]]' personnel: 200,000<ref name="BS-113092700488"/> <br />{{•}} [[Greyhounds (Police)|Greyhounds]]{{cn|date=July 2020}} <br />{{•}} [[Special Operation Group]]<ref name="greenhunt start">{{cite news|title=Operation Greenhunt starts in Orissa|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/operationgreenhuntstartsinorissa/598626/0|access-date=28 September 2013|newspaper=[[The Indian Express]]|date=1 April 2010}}</ref> <br />{{•}} [[Indian Air Force]]: [[MI-17]] and MI-17V5 helicopters<ref name="TH-4763722"/> (and drones)<ref name="TH-5778106"/>

| strength2        = {{•}} [[People's Liberation Guerrilla Army]]: 8,000 – 9,000 (September 2013)<ref name="BS-113092700488"/> <br />{{•}} People's Militia (armed with bows, arrows, and machetes): 38,000<ref>{{cite news |title=Analysis: India's Maoist challenge |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/08/2013812124328669128.html |first=Kamal |last=Kumar |publisher=[[Al Jazeera]] |date=August 2013 |access-date=27 February 2014}}</ref>

'''Operation Green Hunt''' is the name used by the [[Indian media]] to describe the "all-out offensive by [[Paramilitary forces of India|paramilitary forces]] and the [[State Armed Police Forces|states forces]]" against the [[Naxalite]]s.<ref name="TH-101706">{{cite news |title=Green Hunt: the anatomy of an operation |url=http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/green-hunt-the-anatomy-of-an-operation/article101706.ece |first=Aman |last=Sethi |newspaper=The Hindu |date=6 February 2013 |access-date=23 October 2013}}</ref> The operation is believed to have begun in November 2009 along five states in the "[[Red Corridor]]."{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

In April 2010, [[Mark Sofer]] had a conversation with [[Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee]] and [[M. K. Narayanan]] on the subject of the "Maoist extremism" and [[West Bengal]]'s internal security, and offered assistance by [[Israel]] in the state's battle against the Maoists.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel to help West Bengal tackle Maoists |url=http://news.rediff.com/report/2010/apr/12/israel-to-help-west-bengal-tackle-maoists.htm |work=Rediff |date=12 April 2010 |access-date=30 October 2013}}</ref>

Initially in 2009, the government of India had decided to move 80,000 central paramilitary personnel to wage offensive against the Maoists, strengthened by a fleet of 10 [[Military helicopter|armed helicopters]] from the [[Indian Air Force]].<ref>{{cite news |title=10 IAF choppers for rebel combat |url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091229/jsp/nation/story_11919512.jsp |work=The Telegraph |publisher=[[ABP Group]] |location=New Delhi |date=29 December 2009 |access-date=23 September 2013}}</ref> On 3 January 2013, the government of India issued a statement that it is deploying 10,000 more central paramilitary personnel in [[Bastar division|Bastar]], Odisha and some parts of Jharkhand.<ref name="SATP-2013">{{cite web |title=Incidents and Statements involving CPI-Maoist: 2013 |url=http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/india/terroristoutfits/CPI_M_Timeline13.htm |publisher=SATP |location=New Delhi |access-date=27 February 2014}}</ref> By May 2013, about 84,000 troops from the CRPF had been stationed in the Red corridor to beef up the offensive.<ref>{{cite news |title=CRPF will launch fresh operations against Naxals in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand |url=http://newindianexpress.com/nation/CRPF-will-launch-fresh-operations-against-Naxals-in-Chhattisgarh-Jharkhand/2013/05/30/article1612837.ece |work=Indo-Asian News Service |publisher=[[The New Indian Express]] |location=New Delhi |date=30 May 2013 |access-date=15 October 2013}}</ref> Apart from the paramilitary personnel, the [[State Armed Police Forces|SAPF]] personnel deployed in operations against the Maoists are estimated to number around 200,000.<ref name="BS-113092700488">{{cite news |title=Reds in retreat |url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/reds-in-retreat-113092700488_1.html |first1=R. |last1=Krishna Das |first2=Sahil |last2=Makkar |first3=Probal |last3=Basak |first4=Dillip |last4=Satapathy |date=27 September 2013 |access-date=10 October 2013 |newspaper=[[Business Standard]]}}</ref> In his analysis in March 2014, [[Gautam Navlakha]] has claimed that 286,200 CRPF personnel along with 100,000 personnel from other central paramilitary forces and the SAPF are now engaged in the offensive against the CPI (Maoist) in 10 states of India.<ref>{{cite web| title=Ambush amplifies a struggle |url=http://sanhati.com/excerpted/9499/ |first=Gautam |last=Navlakha |author-link=Gautam Navlakha |publisher=Sanhati |date=30 March 2014 |access-date=17 May 2014}}</ref> On 8 June 2014, the [[Minister of Home Affairs (India)|Minister of Home Affairs]] officially approved the deployment of another 10,000 troops from the paramilitary forces to fight against the Maoists in Chhattisgarh.<ref name="TH-6107418">{{cite news |title=Chhattisgarh gears for 'result-oriented' approach against Maoists |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/chhattisgarh-gears-for-resultoriented-approach-against-maoists/article6107418.ece |first=Pavan |last=Dahat |newspaper=The Hindu |location=Raipur |date=12 June 2014 |access-date=13 June 2014}}</ref>

The Times of India, in May 2013, stated that the Ministry of Home Affairs has decided to induce 10,000 more paramilitary personal to move "towards a fight to finish war against Maoists in Red Zone."<ref>{{cite news |title=Government to deploy 10,000 more personnel in four states to fight Maoists |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-05-08/india/39116026_1_paramilitary-forces-battalions-security-forces |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523023300/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-05-08/india/39116026_1_paramilitary-forces-battalions-security-forces |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 May 2013 |first=Vishwa |last=Mohan |location=New Delhi |date=8 May 2013 |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |access-date=23 September 2013}}</ref>

The [[Indian Army]] has also been stationed in the Red corridor, however, the Army claims that it is present there to train the paramilitary personnel to fight against the Maoists and denies its direct role in the offensive operations.<ref>{{cite news |title=Indian Army Raises the Stakes in Its War Against the Maoists |url=http://world.time.com/2011/06/27/army-raises-the-stakes-in-fight-against-the-naxals/ |first=Jyoti |last=Thottam |work=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=27 June 2011 |access-date=23 September 2013}}</ref> The [[Chief of the Army Staff (India)|Chief of the Army Staff]] and the [[Indian Army#Commands|7 army commanders]] in mid-2011 had assessed that, if required, about 60,000-65,000 troops from the Indian Army would need to be induced in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, [[Madhya Pradesh]], Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal to battle the Naxalites.<ref>{{cite web |title=South Asia Intelligence Review: Weekly Assessments & Briefings |url=http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/sair/Archives/sair10/10_3.htm |volume=Volume 10 (Number 3) |work=Institute for Conflict Management |publisher=SATP |date=25 July 2011 |access-date=24 March 2014}}</ref> On 30 May 2013, the Indian Air Force's [[Air Chief Marshal]] declared that apart from the currently operating [[MI-17]] helicopters, the Indian Air Force is inducing a fleet of MI-17V5 helicopters to "provide full support to anti-Naxal operations."<ref name="TH-4763722">{{cite news |title=Air Force to lend support for anti-Naxal operations |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/air-force-to-lend-support-for-antinaxal-operations/article4763722.ece |work=The Hindu |publisher=The Hindu Group |date=30 May 2013 |access-date=17 February 2014}}</ref>

Recently in August 2014, the Ministry of Home Affairs stated that it is "sending" 2,000 personnel from the [[Naga Regiment|Naga Battalions]] of the [[Nagaland]]'s Indian Reserve Battalions (IRB) in Chhattisgarh's Bastar to attack the Maoists, which according to [[The Economic Times]], would make Bastar "the most–militarised zone in India." The Naga Battalion personnel are being send to fight the Maoists for a second time, with having battled the Maoists once before in West Bengal.<ref name="ET–40383919">{{cite news |title=Government to send 2,000 para-military men of Naga unit to fight Maoists in Bastar |url=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/government-to-send-2000-para-military-men-of-naga-unit-to-fight-maoists-in-bastar/articleshow/40383919.cms |first=Aman |last=Sharma |newspaper=The Economic Times |date=19 August 2014 |access-date=19 August 2014}}</ref>

The Indian armed forces' personnel use [[satellite phone]]s and they also have access to [[unmanned aerial vehicle]]s (UAVs).<ref name="BS-113092700488"/> Security forces have been using UAVs in anti-Maoist operations for quite some time in [[Bihar]], [[Chhattisgarh]] and [[Jharkhand]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Bihar Police using UAV Drones to track Maoists Movements|url=http://news.biharprabha.com/2014/02/bihar-police-using-uav-drones-to-track-maoists-movements/|work=Indo-Asian News Service |publisher=Bihar Prabha|access-date=18 February 2014}}</ref> Presently, the UAVs are being provided by the [[National Technical Research Organisation]] (NTRO) and Indian Air Force, but they have not been able to yield desired results for the armed forces. Hence, to further advance the offensive, the [[Defence Research and Development Organisation]] has taken an initiative to specially develop UAVs with "lower frequency radars" for the armed forces to "track down" the Maoists.<ref>{{cite news |title=DRDO's UAVs to track down Naxals |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/drdos-uavs-to-track-down-naxals/article5664556.ece |first=Gaurav Vivek |last=Bhatnagar |newspaper=The Hindu |date=7 February 2014 |access-date=17 February 2014}}</ref> The NTRO has specially imported 12 drones from Israel for aerial surveillance of Naxalites' activities in the forest region on Andhra Pradesh–Orissa–Chhattisgarh border.<ref name="TH-5778106">{{cite news |title=CRPF, State police ignored pinpoint warning on ambush |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/crpf-state-police-ignored-pinpoint-warning-on-ambush/article5778106.ece |first=Praveen |last=Swami |newspaper=The Hindu |date=13 March 2014 |access-date=13 March 2014 |quote=India's super-secret National Technical Reconnaissance organisation, or NTRO, operates a fleet of 12 Israeli-made Searcher tactical drones for surveillance of the vast forest tracts on the Andhra Pradesh-Orissa-Chhattisgarh border, home to the largest Maoist formations in the country. The expensive investment in remotely piloted reconnaissance assets has not, however, led to success in detecting hundreds-strong Maoist units.}}</ref>