Paromita Das
New Delhi, 27th November: For decades, Bharat’s red corridor—a vast belt stretching across Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, and parts of Maharashtra—was a scar on the nation’s conscience. It was a region where ideology met insurgency, and governance fought a grim, patient battle for legitimacy. Since 2014, however, the Modi Government has quietly redrawn the contours of this conflict through one of the most well-funded and strategically coordinated counter-insurgency campaigns in Bharat’s history.
Data just released under the Right to Information Act offers the clearest glimpse yet into the financial architecture of that long campaign: more than ₹4,700 crore has been systematically channelled into LWE-affected regions – ₹3,507.86 crore through the SRE Scheme to states, and another ₹1,217.16 crore to central agencies under specialised anti-Naxal programmes.
These figures are not just numbers; they show a decade of calculated statecraft in destroying one of the most entrenched insurgencies in the world.
From Policy to Practice: A Financial Backbone of Counter-Insurgency
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the funds released from 2014–15 onwards to 2024–25 indicate a political and administrative priority that has been consistent. The SRE Scheme is a reimbursement scheme under which Naxal-affected states can finance their police operations, intelligence network upgrade, and rehabilitation of surrendered militants.
But this financial commitment was never just transactional-it became the backbone of a larger national security doctrine. Modi’s government integrated the SRE with parallel initiatives like the Modernisation of Police Forces Scheme, Aspirational Districts Programme, and Infrastructure Development Projects in LWE Areas. The result was a multi-layered strategy where force, development, and persuasion worked in synchrony.
In effect, Bharat’s approach to Naxalism evolved from a reactionary firefight to a calibrated counter-insurgency blueprint.
The States at the Core of the Battle
Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand emerged as the top recipients of financial assistance—states traditionally considered the epicentres of Naxal violence.
- Chhattisgarh: ₹1,219.28 crore
- Jharkhand: ₹32 crore
- Odisha: ₹62 crore
- Maharashtra: ₹53 crore
- Andhra Pradesh: ₹21 crore
- Bihar: ₹25 crore
- Telangana and West Bengal: over ₹100 crore each
The fiscal pattern tells its own story. For instance, the spike in allocations during intense operations in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region reflected how the Centre scaled resources in direct proportion to the volatility of the conflict. Indeed, by FY 2024–25, the state had received its highest annual reimbursement thus far-an unmistakable signal that the government was maintaining operational pressure on Maoist strongholds.
What the SRE Really Funds: Beyond Bullets and Uniforms
While the optics often focus on paramilitary operations, the real power of the SRE Scheme lies in its versatility. To wit, it covers:
- Training and operational logistics for local police
- Ex gratia compensation to civilians and security personnel
- Rehabilitation and financial support for surrendered Naxals
- Public awareness campaigns and community policing initiatives
- Property damage reimbursements following LWE incidents
The multidimensionality of this design makes the fight against insurgency not just a battlefield operation, but a battle to be won within hearts and minds, through livelihoods. Mixing tactical aggression with developmental compassion, the scheme blurs the line between coercion and reconciliation.
The Central Push: CRPF, Intelligence, and Aerial Support
Besides the SRE, the Assistance to Naxal Management (ANM) and Assistance to Central Agencies for LWE Management (ACALWEM) schemes routed more than ₹1,217 crore for the strengthening of central operations. It maintained elite combat units, ensured inter-state intelligence sharing, and provided for aerial surveillance and training of special action groups.
All these mechanisms fit together into a two-layer system: states handled the local engagements, while central agencies provided muscle, technology, and mobility. It was this synchronization that enabled the government to progressively wrest territory from the Maoists, neutralize leaders, and decimate the Maoist chain of command.
The Psychological Turning Point: After Hidma
With the death of Madvi Hidma, that elusive Maoist commander responsible for some of the bloodiest attacks in recent memory, the psychological war may have shifted decisively in favor of the state. His killing, followed by the surrender of a number of senior cadres, provoked visible fractures within the insurgency.
In a rare communication, the Special Zonal Committee of the CPI (Maoist) reportedly wrote to the chief ministers of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra, hinting at support for more surrenders and a potential end to hostilities. But the Modi Government’s stand was clear: talks would begin only after unconditional surrender.
A Strategic Marathon, Not a Sprint
The long arc of Bharat’s counter-LWE campaign underlines an important truth: insurgencies are not defeated by force alone. The RTI disclosures reveal how the government’s decade-long policy combined persistence with planning, investing not just in arms but in administration, roads, schools, and psychological rehabilitation.
With the steady decline in violence, increasing surrenders, and visible absence of high-profile attacks, Home Minister Amit Shah’s stated target of eradicating Naxalism by March 2026 now appears within reach and underlines the effectiveness of the campaign.
But as experts caution, maintaining stability after suppression will be the next challenge. Rehabilitation, political inclusion, and governance in previously lawless zones must continue to receive equal focus if the victory is to last.
Beyond Numbers: The Shift in National Will
What strikes most about this data is not the financial scale, but consistency of purpose. For the first time, Bharat’s approach to Left Wing Extremism reflects a convergence of political, military and developmental willpower. The success of the campaign does not just lie in the crores spent, but in the government’s refusal to treat the insurgency as a peripheral problem.
The death of Hidma may have punctuated a turning point, but the real transformation started when the Bharatiya state decided to reclaim the narrative of its own heartland—village by village, road by road, rupee by rupee.
The End of the Red Corridor?
As Bharat approaches the projected 2026 deadline, the battle against Naxalism appears to be entering its closing act. More than ₹4,700 crore in strategic spending has powered this transformation, and it has taken the form of declining violence, expanding governance, and growing civilian confidence in the state.
Sustained with equal focus on rehabilitation and reintegration, the campaign could mark not just the end of an insurgency but the restoration of faith in Bharat’s democratic and developmental promise.
As one security analyst said, “The red corridor didn’t vanish overnight—it was painted over by persistence.”
