Development, Inequality and the Roots of Extremism

Left-wing extremism did not start in the forest. It started in a village in West Bengal in 1967. This article follows its roots, its response and its end.

1.1 What happened at Naxalbari?

In the summer of 1967, a small village called Naxalbari made news. It lies in Darjeeling district, West Bengal. Peasants there rose up, and the movement spread across India.

The name stuck. People still say Naxalite or Naxalism for the movement.

1.2 Who are the Maoists?

Violence took two forms over time. First came the Naxalite movement of the late 1960s. Then came the Maoist movement from 2004.

Its worst attack was at Chintalnar in April 2010. A whole company of the CRPF was wiped out.

Much of the unrest sat on tribal land. People lost land, forest access and livelihoods. Then they met a state that did not listen.

2.1 What did the 2008 Expert Group find?

The Planning Commission set up an Expert Group on Development Challenges in Extremist Affected Areas. It studied displacement, forest issues, weak tenancy rights and moneylender exploitation.

Its report said land alienation, forced evictions and displacement added to unrest. Weak protection laws in Scheduled Areas made it worse. Loss of credit led people to moneylenders and then to losing land.

It also said governments had treated unrest as a law and order problem. The report asked them to change that mindset.

2.2 What do PESA and the Forest Rights Act do?

The Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, called PESA, extends village self-rule to Fifth Schedule areas. Gram Sabhas must be consulted on land acquisition and resettlement.

The Forest Rights Act, 2006, recognises forest rights of Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers. The Expert Group said it would help if it was implemented faithfully. It also said it would reinforce the spirit of PESA.

A school with no teacher or a road with no bus is a gap. Extremists try to fill such gaps. The Expert Group said so in its own words.

3.1 What did poor governance look like?

The report links unrest to weak governance, forest policy and excise policy. It adds cultural humiliation and political marginalisation.

It also notes that tribal people in several states feel deep exclusion and alienation. The root issue is how people are treated, not only how much they earn.

3.2 Why did the Supreme Court end Salwa Judum?

Chhattisgarh had used tribal youth as Special Police Officers against Maoists. The Supreme Court ruled on 5 July 2011 that this was unconstitutional. It ordered the force disbanded.

News reports say the Court found Articles 14 and 21 were being violated. The judgment is Nandini Sundar v. State of Chhattisgarh.

The lesson is simple. Arming poor villagers is not a development policy.

3.3 What did violence cost development?

The Home Ministry says Maoists attacked roads, railways and schools. These are the things that carry development into remote areas.

An IDSA book reports talk of about US$ 80 billion of steel projects stalled by instability in mining areas. It also lists attacks on railways, power lines and towers as a risk to investment. Violence and underdevelopment fed each other.

In 2018 the government began ranking its most backward districts. Many of them were also the most Maoist-hit districts.

4.1 How does the programme overlap with LWE?

The Aspirational Districts Programme covers 112 of the most backward districts. It includes 35 districts affected by Left Wing Extremism. NITI Aayog tracks them on health, education and basic services.

So the same map shows backwardness and extremism. That overlap is the strongest data link between the two problems.

India did not choose between force and development. It ran both. The 2015 policy made this official.

5.1 What is the National Policy and Action Plan?

In 2015 the Government approved a National Policy and Action Plan to address LWE. It takes a whole-of-government view. It combines security measures, development steps and rights for local communities.

The Home Minister of the time also spoke of SAMADHAN on 8 May 2017. It is a doctrine for security operations. The letters stand for eight ideas. The first four are Smart leadership, Aggressive strategy, Motivation and training, and Actionable intelligence. The last four are Dashboard-based indicators, Harnessing technology, Action plan for each theatre, and No access to financing.

5.2 What did the money pay for?

The Security Related Expenditure scheme reimburses states for operations, surrendered cadres and families of those killed. The Home Minister said about ₹3,000 crore went to states under it in ten years.

The Special Infrastructure Scheme added about ₹5,000 crore for roads and other works. Surrender-cum-rehabilitation policies back both tracks.

The numbers tell the story. Deaths fell, districts shrank and top leaders were lost. Then the list went empty.

6.1 How fast did violence and the map shrink?

Deaths of civilians and security forces fell from 1,005 in 2010 to 150 in 2024. That is a fall of about 85 per cent. Violence incidents fell from 1,936 to 374.

The count of affected districts went 126, then 90 in April 2018, 70 in July 2021 and 38 in April 2024. It was 8 by December 2025.

6.2 What happened in 2025?

Operation Black Forest ran for 21 days in the Karreguttalu hills, on the Chhattisgarh and Telangana border. Security forces said they killed 31 Maoists, the biggest operation of its kind.

On 21 May 2025 the CPI (Maoist) general secretary Basavaraju was killed in Abujhmad, Chhattisgarh, with 26 others.

6.3 Is India now declared Naxal-free?

The Home Minister said so in Parliament on 30 March 2026. He repeated it in Jagdalpur on 18 May 2026. He said the pledge made on 24 August 2024 was met before 31 March 2026.

The Home Ministry told Parliament on 29 July 2026 that no district is now categorised as LWE affected. Another 37 districts are “Legacy and Thrust” districts. They get support for a little longer. One district is a “District of Concern”.

The cause is still debated. The 2008 Expert Group stressed land, forests and governance. The Home Minister said in March 2026 that the root cause is Left-wing ideology, not lack of development. A good answer names both views.

7.1 Which points get mixed up?

Do not say the “Home Ministry’s LWE list” still has districts. It is now empty. Do not call the Salwa Judum ruling a ban on policing. It was about arming tribal youth as Special Police Officers.

UPSC has asked about LWE in Mains in 2018, 2020 and 2022. All three papers are in the PYQ section below.

What did UPSC ask in 2022?

UPSC CSM 2022, GS Paper III, Q20. The 2022 paper gave it 15 marks and a 250-word limit.

The question: “Naxalism is a social, economic and developmental issue manifesting as a violent internal security threat. In this context, discuss the emerging issues and suggest a multilayered strategy to tackle the menace of Naxalism.”

What did UPSC ask in 2020?

UPSC CSM 2020, GS Paper III, Q19. The 2020 paper gave it 15 marks and a 250-word limit.

The question: “What are the determinants of left-wing extremism in Eastern part of India? What strategy should Government of India, civil administration and security forces adopt to counter the threat in the affected areas?”

What did UPSC ask in 2018?

UPSC CSM 2018, GS Paper III, Q10. The 2018 paper gave it 10 marks and a 150-word limit.

The question: “Left Wing Extremism (LWE) is showing a downward trend, but still affects many parts of the country. Briefly explain the Government of India’s approach to counter the challenges posed by LWE.”

I read these from the scanned question papers.