Bihar to Central Govt.: Need a helicopter to intensify anti-maoist operations

Patna: Bihar has asked the central government for a helicopter and two battalions of paramilitary troopers for operations against the Maoists ahead of the upcoming assembly polls, an official said on Friday.

"The state government has demanded the central government to provide it with an Air Force helicopter, and extra two battalions of the central para military security forces to intensify anti-Maoists operations in Bihar, ahead of the upcoming polls," an official of the state home department said.

Bihar Police has no helicopter of its own, and borrows one from neighbouring Jharkhand during its combing operations against Maoists.

Officials said that like Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Jharkhand, Bihar too needed a helicopter in its fight against the Maoists.

According to a top police officer associated with anti-Maoist operations in the state, the Bihar government has requested the union home ministry to provide it with a M-17 helicopter of the Indian Air Force, or a similar one for effective operations against the Maoists.

At present, 24 battalions of the central paramilitary forces have been deployed in Bihar's Maoist-affected districts. (IANS)