Maoist insurgency persists in India’s Red Corridor despite govt victory claims
New Delhi: Despite Indian government claims of victory, Maoist insurgency continues to plague India’s Red Corridor with regular lethal IED attacks.
According to Kashmir Media Service, security data shows the conflict still claims dozens of Indian forces’ personnel lives annually.
In January 2025, Naxals killed nine people, including eight District Reserve Guard jawans and a driver, in an IED ambush in Bijapur, Chhattisgarh.
From 2000 to 2025, over 12,100 people have died in the conflict, including 2,722 security forces personnel, 4,134 civilians and 5,001 Maoists. While incidents dropped from 2,213 in 2010 to around 400 in 2025, IED attacks by CPI-Maoist rose to 53 in 2025.
Analysts say heavy-handed security operations, including those targeting leaders like Nambala Keshava Rao in 2025, alienate Adivasi tribal populations and sustain recruitment for the Communist Party of India (Maoist). A persistent focus on military-first strategies has left underlying socio-economic disputes over land, forest rights and resource extraction unresolved, keeping the insurgency alive 58 years after the 1967 Naxalbari uprising.
