‘LTTE training, police ammo strengthened Reds’
NEW DELHI: A new book offers fresh insights into the way the Maoists
built their military prowess, starting with special training by the
LTTE. Their first-ever professional military camp was held in the
forests of Bastar in 1987, where they were trained by an LTTE
leader named Suresh. Among those trained was Ganapathy, currently the
man at the helm of CPI Maoist. "The Indian army had trained Suresh at
the Indian military academy in Dehradun
while he was in the LTTE. Now, it was his turn to teach the Maoists to
fight the Indian security forces. What goes around comes around," writes
Shubhranshu Choudhary, a former BBC journalist, in his book 'Let's Call
Him Vasu'.
The book is based on Choudhary's forays in the jungles of Dandakaranya, the region at the tri-junction of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, where he met and interviewed dozens of Maoists including some of the senior-most figures in the rebel movement.
A Maoist leader told Choudhary that they bought their first AK-47 assault rifle in 1987. But as prices rose in the international arms market from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh per gun, they found they could no longer afford to buy weapons and they switched to manufacturing their own arms. "Now, we purchase only 5 per cent of our arms; around 15 per cent is looted from the police, and we make 80 per cent ourselves," says Rajanna, identified as the man in-charge of the arms division of the CPI Maoist.
But the Maoists do not manufacture automatic weapons. They were in the process of making and testing .303 rifles, sten guns and rocket launchers when their factories in Bhopal and Rourkela were busted. However, they still have the ability to put together a formidable arsenal: single-shot rifles, improvised cannons, bombs and army-range grenades.
As for the source of ammunition supply, Rajanna tells Choudhary it is none other than the police. "The police are very greedy, and such deals take place in every police station in India. Policemen at all levels, from the lowest ranks through the top, are involved," he says. Rajanna also ruled out the possibility of peace talks with the government since the last Maoist Congress in 2007 had rejected it and only a fresh Congress can approve it.
Unlike Nepal, where every guerilla fighter earns 100 rupees a month, in India, Maoists cadres do not earn salaries. But CPI Maoist takes care of their basic needs by supplying clothes, soap, oil, by spending an average of 450 rupees a month per fighter. While adivasis have risen to lead military companies in Dandakaranya - eleven of the twelve company commanders in the zone are adivasis - the political decision-making remains in the hands of the leaders from Andhra Pradesh
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/LTTE-training-police-ammo-strengthened-Reds/articleshow/17701408.cms
The book is based on Choudhary's forays in the jungles of Dandakaranya, the region at the tri-junction of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, where he met and interviewed dozens of Maoists including some of the senior-most figures in the rebel movement.
A Maoist leader told Choudhary that they bought their first AK-47 assault rifle in 1987. But as prices rose in the international arms market from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh per gun, they found they could no longer afford to buy weapons and they switched to manufacturing their own arms. "Now, we purchase only 5 per cent of our arms; around 15 per cent is looted from the police, and we make 80 per cent ourselves," says Rajanna, identified as the man in-charge of the arms division of the CPI Maoist.
But the Maoists do not manufacture automatic weapons. They were in the process of making and testing .303 rifles, sten guns and rocket launchers when their factories in Bhopal and Rourkela were busted. However, they still have the ability to put together a formidable arsenal: single-shot rifles, improvised cannons, bombs and army-range grenades.
As for the source of ammunition supply, Rajanna tells Choudhary it is none other than the police. "The police are very greedy, and such deals take place in every police station in India. Policemen at all levels, from the lowest ranks through the top, are involved," he says. Rajanna also ruled out the possibility of peace talks with the government since the last Maoist Congress in 2007 had rejected it and only a fresh Congress can approve it.
Unlike Nepal, where every guerilla fighter earns 100 rupees a month, in India, Maoists cadres do not earn salaries. But CPI Maoist takes care of their basic needs by supplying clothes, soap, oil, by spending an average of 450 rupees a month per fighter. While adivasis have risen to lead military companies in Dandakaranya - eleven of the twelve company commanders in the zone are adivasis - the political decision-making remains in the hands of the leaders from Andhra Pradesh
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/LTTE-training-police-ammo-strengthened-Reds/articleshow/17701408.cms
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