Former BSF ADG PK Mishra says Madvi Hidma’s killing has crippled Maoist military power, with recruitment, funding and leadership collapsing—making a Naxal-free India by 2026 more realistic than ever.
The killing of top Maoist commander Madvi Hidma has triggered intense debate over whether India is finally turning the page on its five-decade-long armed insurgency. In an exclusive conversation with Asianet Newsable English’s Heena Sharma, former Additional Director General of the BSF, PK Mishra, who has spent decades dealing with Left-Wing Extremism (LWE), declared that Hidma’s death has broken the backbone of Maoist military operations in the Red Corridor — and that 2026 could indeed mark the end of Maoism in India.
The End of a “Terror Symbol”
Hidma, 44, a native of Sukma in Chhattisgarh, rose from a village recruit to the only Central Committee member from Bastar, eventually taking command of the Maoists’ most feared fighting unit — the PLGA 1st Battalion.
“He was the mastermind behind every major ambush in the Red Corridor,” Mishra recalled.
- Among them:
- 2010 Tarmetla attack – 76 CRPF personnel killed
- 2013 Jiram Ghati attack – 32 Congress leaders killed
- 2011 Chhattisgarh ambush – 25 security personnel killed
- 2021 Sukma–Bijapur ambush – 22 security personnel killed
“He knew the terrain. He knew all the rules and hor to escape in an operation,” Mishra said, recounting how Hidma repeatedly slipped through multi-layered operations even when surrounded.
But that run finally ended in November 2025.
The Operation That Ended It
According to Mishra, intelligence from multiple states helped pin Hidma down while he was fleeing with his wife and four senior cadres, attempting to cross into Andhra Pradesh.
“Greyhounds of Telangana, police from Odisha, Andhra and Chhattisgarh surrounded him in Meredudumili forest of Aluri district in Odisha-Andhra border, Chhattisgarh border in the tri-junction and the contact continued from six o’clock and the firing started from six o’clock morning and that’s all. That was the end of Hidma.”
Just a day later, another blow followed: Tech Shankar, the Maoists’ chief IED expert and Central Committee member, was also gunned down with six cadres in the same forest range.
“Operational Capability Is Now Zero”
Mishra is categorical: the Maoist movement no longer has the ability to fight pitched battles.
“There is no young leader left who can lead PLGA 1st Battalion. Recruitment is drying up. Tribals have lost interest. There are no weapons, no instructors, and no safe training camps.”
The most they can now do, he said, is plant IEDs on forest tracks.
Funding and Weapon Supply Cut Off
One of the most decisive shifts, Mishra explained, came from cutting Maoist logistics:
- Chinese and Myanmar weapon supply lines blocked
- Funding networks from urban sympathisers dismantled
- Financial flows from large cities like Delhi, Kolkata and Raipur capped
With their underground economy crushed, Maoists “cannot even receive funds now,” Mishra said.
From 180 Districts to Just 9
Once spread across more than half of India, Maoism today is confined to a fraction of that.
“It was 150 districts. After Hidma’s killing, we are down to just nine,” Mishra said, adding that forces are already penetrating the last remaining pockets.
“We will ensure these all 9 districts will be free of Maoism very soon,” he declared.
“You Cannot Defeat Maoism With Guns Alone”
Despite the military success, Mishra emphasized that real victory lies not in firepower but development.
“Let us help those tribals in every respect. The tribals, they are from our family. We should not think that they are outsiders.”
“Let’s go there. Let’s educate them free of cost. We should have the schools free of cost and let them be educated and get the service everywhere. We are now making helipads there so that our troops can go and land. They will have helibound operations,” he added.
For decades, tribal populations lived in isolation, exploited by contractors, lacking roads, schools, electricity and food distribution. Maoists filled that vacuum through fear and coercion.
Over the last few years:
- Roads and connectivity have expanded
- Forward Operating Bases have become permanent administration points
- Helipads enable mobility to remote villages
- Education programs are enrolling tribal youth
- Women are increasingly entering government jobs
- Sports outreach like the Bastar Olympics is shaping a new generation
“Now tribal mothers are forcing their children to study and get jobs, not pick up weapons,” Mishra said.
The Mistake That Gave Birth to Maoism
Mishra also pointed to historical policy failures — especially what he calls the political mishandling of tribal lands during 1971–72.
“Large numbers of Bangladeshi refugees were settled in Dandakaranya. Tribals were evicted and given nothing. That hurt deeply. That is how resentment grew and Maoism spread.”
Today, he said, the State is finally undoing decades of neglect.
What Happens to Forces Like DRG After Maoism Ends?
On criticism of recruitment into District Reserve Guard (DRG) and similar local forces, Mishra said the solution is rehabilitation and mainstreaming — much as former militants were integrated in Kashmir.
“We had similar type of Salma, Jhudum and all in Kashmir also and I had a number of militants, they were working with me and those militants also, they joined me in making a small film.”
Is 2026 a Realistic Deadline?
Union Home Minister Amit Shah had set March 2026 as the target to create a “Naxal-Mukt Bharat.” Mishra believes the target could be achieved even earlier — possibly by December 2025.
“I am very sure what Honourable Prime Minister has thought that India will be Naxal Mukt Bharat. It may happen by 31st December 2025 because Hidma has gone and operational capability that has gone to zero. Devji is now pondering, he is now running away. He will be killed or to be caught or he may surrender anytime. Now the family of Devji is saying that he has been apprehended but the police has denied it,” Mishra said.
“Yes, there was a statement by his family and it came out the next day when Tech Sankar was killed. Information came that Devji also was killed but all the seven dead bodies, they were identified and Devji is still there and he is there and that’s all but Devji cannot lead PLGF 1st Battalion. He has no operational capability but Devji will be caught,” he added.
“Devji will surrender. They have no other option,” he declared.