Bastar and Kondagaon, which were previously among districts impacted by Maoist insurgency, no longer featured in the list of Left Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected districts.

The Union home ministry dropped them from the list, marking a key shift in Chhattisgarh’s long-standing efforts against Naxalism.

This development came shortly after Maoist general secretary Basavaraju was killed along with 27 other Maoists in an encounter in Narayanpur district.

Bastar had remained on the LWE-affected list for over 25 years.

The government reclassified Bastar and Kondagaon as “districts of legacy and thrust,” which indicated that Maoist activities had reduced to a great extent.

Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range), Sundarraj P, told The Times of India, “Kondagaon and Bastar are among 30 districts across the country now brought under the ‘districts of legacy and thrust’ category.”

He explained that this reclassification removed them from the list of LWE-affected districts, but emphasised that the need for focused development and operational vigilance continued.

Sukma, Bijapur, Narayanpur, and Kanker, other districts in the Bastar division, continued to be listed under the “most affected LWE districts.”

Dantewada remained in the “other LWE districts” category.

The home ministry also placed Dhamtari, Kabirdham, Khairagarh-Chhuikhadan-Gandai, and Rajnandgaon in the “districts of legacy and thrust” category.

Bastar and Kondagaon had earlier been counted among the core zones of Maoist insurgency.

However, both districts saw a sharp decline in violent incidents over recent years.

Kondagaon witnessed only one encounter in nearly five years. On April 16, security forces killed two senior Maoist commanders in that incident.

In the 2023 assembly elections, both districts recorded high voter turnout. Bastar registered 84.6% polling, while Kondagaon recorded 81.7%.

In its recent notification, the Ministry of Home Affairs identified 18 districts nationwide as “LWE-affected,” “other LWE-affected,” or “districts of concern.”

This list included six districts from Chhattisgarh.

Sundarraj said, “Due to effective anti-Naxal operations in recent months, we have seen remarkably positive outcomes in the LWE scenario in Bastar Range.”

He added, “The categorisation of Kondagaon and Bastar as ‘districts of legacy’ is a significant step closer to being ‘Maoist-free’.”

He said, “All our efforts would now focus on completely eliminating the Naxal threat from Bastar Range.”