UPSC foundations · Note 262
Left-wing extremism: history and response
Study context: GS III — Linkages between development and spread of extremism; role of external state and non-state actors in creating challenges to internal security; challenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and social networking sites, basics of cyber security; money-laundering and its prevention; security challenges and their management in border areas; linkages of organised crime with terrorism; various security forces and agencies and their mandate.
Left-wing extremism in India, often called Naxalism, traces its origins to a peasant uprising at Naxalbari in West Bengal in 1967 and to Maoist ideology, which argued that armed struggle by peasants could overthrow the existing order. Over decades, various Maoist groups merged into the Communist Party of India (Maoist) in 2004. At its widest, the movement affected a belt of forested, mineral-rich and often poorly served districts in central and eastern India, sometimes called the Red Corridor.
The government's response, formalised in the National Policy and Action Plan to address left-wing extremism approved in 2015, combines security operations with development: roads, mobile connectivity, banking, schools and health services, plus surrender and rehabilitation policies. Operation SAMADHAN, launched in 2017, summarised the security doctrine as smart leadership, aggressive strategy, motivation, actionable intelligence, dashboard-based monitoring, harnessing technology and action plans for each theatre. Whether the doctrine or the development spending mattered more is debated, but officials credit the combination.
Official figures show a sharp contraction. The Ministry of Home Affairs reported that the number of left-wing extremism-affected districts fell from 126 in April 2018 to 90, then 70 in July 2021, 38 in April 2024, 18 in April 2025 and 11 in October 2025, with only three districts then categorised as most affected. Violence also fell sharply from its 2010 peak, with the ministry reporting incidents down by about 89 per cent and civilian and security-force deaths down by about 91 per cent by 2025 compared with 2010. The government had set a target of eliminating left-wing extremism by March 2026, a target whose outcome should be re-checked at the time of reading.
The remaining questions are about durability. Formerly affected areas still need land rights, forest rights, jobs and credible local governance, or the grievances that fed recruitment — displacement, exploitation and weak services — can return in another form. Surrendered cadres need livelihoods and protection, and security gains need to survive the withdrawal of extra forces. Counting districts is easier than measuring trust.
Key takeaways
- Left-wing extremism grew from the 1967 Naxalbari uprising and later Maoist organisation.
- The post-2015 strategy combined security operations with roads, connectivity and services.
- By October 2025 the ministry reported 11 affected districts, down from 126 in 2018.
Why it matters for civil studies
Left-wing extremism tests whether security operations plus development can end an insurgency, and whether the gains last after forces withdraw.
Think it through
Is the decline of left-wing extremism mainly a security success, a development success, or a sign that the movement's own support had already weakened?
From the Public Notes companion study collection. Editorial context and corrections.