New Delhi: Over 12,000 people, including security force personnel, have been killed by Naxals in nine Left Wing Extremism-hit states in the past 20 years.
Of the total 12,183 people killed, 9,471 were civilians and 2,712 central and state security force personnel, the Home Ministry said in reply to an RTI query.
The killings were reported in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
About 468 people were killed by Naxals in 1993, 376 in 1994, 396 in 1995, 541 in 1996, 583 in 1997, 489 in 1998, 595 in 1999, 548 in 2000, 564 in 2001, 481 in 2002 and 515 in 2003 in these nine states, it said.
As many as 565 people lost their lives due to Naxal violence in 2004, 659 in 2005, 678 in 2006, 691 in 2007, 717 in 2008, 908 in 2009 and a huge 1,005 during 2010, the Home Ministry said.
Besides, 608 people (466 civilians and 142 security force personnel), were killed in the nine states by Naxals in 2011, 415 (301 civilians and 114 security force personnel) in 2012 and 381 (267 civilians and 114 security force personnel) between January and December 15, last year, it said.
Maoists had yesterday ambushed a security patrol killing 16 people, including 11 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, in Naxal-hit Sukma district of Chhattisgarh.
The attack was carried out barely five km from the area where top Congress leaders of Chhattisgarh were killed in a Maoist attack in May last year.
Mahendra Karma, who started anti-Naxal movement Salwa Judum, Nand Kumar Patel, Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee chief and his son Dinesh were among 25 others who were killed in the attack carried out by Naxals on May 25, 2013 in Darbha Valley of the state.
Veteran Congress leader Vidya Charan Shukla, who was also injured in the attack, later succumbed to his injuries in a Gurgaon hospital.
As many as 75 CRPF personnel and a Chhattisgarh Police official were killed in a Naxal attack in Dantewada district on April 6, 2010.
A total of 90 battalions (90,000 men) of central security force personnel and one Indian Reserve Naga Battalion (1,000 personnel) have been deployed for anti-Naxal operations in the nine Naxal-hit states, the reply said.
States like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal have constituted a unified command to carry out anti-Naxal operations.
