Timeline of Maharashtra Maoist attacks in last 10 years

Maharashtra's Gadchiroli district and surroundings have been the hotbed of Maoist activities for several decades. In the past 10 years, the rebels have attacked security forces and civilians several times. A Timeline:

FEB. 01, 2009:

Maoists ambush a police patrol, killing 15 personnel, in the forests near Morke village in the Dhanora sub-district.

MAY 21, 2009:

In a guerilla-style attack, the Reds attack a police party, killing at least 16 police personnel, including five women, in Murum village in Dhanora.

OCT. 08, 2009:

The rebels and police were engaged in a bloody three-hour gunbattle near Laheri in Bhamragad sub-district in which 17 policemen were killed, including some from the elite C-60, the commando unit of Anti Naxal Operations (ANO). It ranks as the worst-ever attack by Maoists on police personnel and took place at the height of the 2009 Maharashtra Assembly elections.

OCT. 04, 2010:

Maoists attack and killed four policemen by triggering a landmine explosion near Pirimili village in Aheri sub-district.

OCT. 08, 2010:

The rebels lob grenades at a school in Sawangaon village and kill 15, mostly minor students.

MAY 05, 2011:

At least six persons killed as the outlaws trigger a landmine blast on a wedding party proceeding from Rajnandgaon (Chhattisgarh) to Chandrapur (Maharashtra), near Dhanora when they were passing the Gadchiroli forests.

MAY 19, 2011:

In two separate incidents, Maoists kill four police personnel of a patrol party in Bejurphata and Nargonda, both in Bhamragad and around 25 km apart.

AUG. 08, 2011:

Two troopers were wounded when Naxals suddenly opened fire on a police patrol which was accompanying a civilian team of the Children and Women's Rights Commision to the Gadchiroli headquarters after attending a function in a local village.

AUG. 20, 2011:

Three security personnel, including two troopers of the Cobra Battalion of the CRPF, killed in an encounter in Makadchua village.

MAR. 27, 2012:

12 commandos of the elite combat team of CRPF killed and 28 others injured as Maoists trigger a landmine blast on a convoy in the Dhanora sub-district area for patrolling duties.

MAY 01, 2019:

In a huge tragedy on the 59th anniversary of Maharashtra Day, 15 commandos and a driver of the elite C-60 force killed when Maoists trigger an IED blast on their vehicle in Kurkheda sub-district.

Earlier, the Maoists had attacked a road construction site and torched around three dozen heavy vehicles and two site offices of a contractor near Dadarpur village.

These attacks came after the Maoist groups had observed a week of mourning to mark the first anniversary of the killings of their 40 comrades on April 22, 2018 and days after Gadchiroli-Chimur Lok Sabha seat recorded the highest voting in the elections held in April 2019.

--IANS

qn/prs