In a 1st, CRPF does cave interventions in 'biggest' anti-Maoist op

BIJAPUR: CRPF DG G P Singh on Wednesday said Operation Blackforest — which demolished a Maoist ‘bastion’ in Karregutalu Hills (KGH) on Chhattisgarh-Telangana border — saw the force try out cave interventions for the first time, for the hills housed a network of 250 cave formations used by the Maoists as convenient hideouts, arms manufacturing units and to dump explosives and rations.

“CRPF has generally been doing house or vehicle interventions. For the first time, we tried cave interventions. We had use a technique and make sure that we do not suffer casualties but neutralise the Maoists who may be there,” he told a press conference here.

Singh said the forces also learnt that Naxals are now using beer bottles to make IEDs, which involve the minimum use of metal. “This now requires ingenuity in detecting IEDs and we will be revising our SOPs accordingly,” he said.

Around 450 IEDs were detected and deactivated, though 15 IEDs that went off caused some injuries to force personnel. Singh said the force has been upgrading its IED detection equipment and technology to whatever is the latest available in the world.

The CRPF chief said the recovery of a whopping 818 barrel grande launcher shells (BGLs) and 450 IEDs during the operation is significant as most of the Maoist attacks on security camps so far were done using BGLs. “Also, most of our personnel out on operations are killed or injured by IEDs,” said Singh.