Security forces launch offensive against Maoist rebels in Jharkhand

Security forces have launched a major offensive against Maoists in Jharkhand's Gumla, Simdega, Ranchi and Singhbhum Districts.

"We are maintaining tight vigil in the region to nab rebels. We are carrying out raids in hideouts and weekly market places," said Superintendent of Police Anish Gupta.

Gupta said an "all-out operation" has been launched against People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI), a breakaway faction of the CPI (Maoist) and the second largest extremist outfit in Jharkhand.

According to police, PLFI cadres are engaged in collecting levy from contractors, small industrialists, traders and transporters. A police report in 2014 said PLFI carried out as many incidents as CPI (Maoist).

The Maoists, also known as Naxals in India, are inspired by the political philosophy of China's late Chairman Mao Zedong. They say they are fighting for the rights of poor farmers and landless labourers.

The rebels have operated for decades across a wide swath of central and eastern India, and grew in strength during recent times in areas where poor, tribal villagers came into conflict with mining companies seeking resources for industrialization.

They have killed police and politicians and targeted government buildings and railway tracks in an insurgency that has killed thousands since the 1960s.