Police officers take cover after an exchange of fire with supporters of Maoist rebels, at Pirakata, in west Midnapore, about 145 kilometers (91 miles) west of Calcutta, India, Thursday, June 18, 2009. Authorities sent hundreds of soldiers Thursday to a remote area of eastern India where Maoist rebels captured more than a dozen villages, killed political rivals and burned police stations and government offices, police said. Police said troops sent had met resistance, mainly from the local population who had felled trees to block roads leading to the area, in support of the Maoists. The rebels, who say they are inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, have been fighting for more than three decades in several Indian states, demanding land and jobs for agricultural laborers and the poor. (AP Photo/Sucheta Das)Indian Troops Launch Offensive in West Bengal Against Maoist Insurgents -- Voice of America
A battle has begun in a remote and heavily forested area in the Indian state of West Bengal. Government troops have been sent there after Maoist rebels seized a number of villages, began killing political rivals and torching government offices and police stations.
Para-military troops have marched into a zone declared liberated from government control by insurgents.
Witnesses say police fired tear gas shells and rubber bullets to disperse Maoist sympathizers attempting to block the advance of government forces. Photo AP.
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More News On India's War With Maoist Guerrillas
Indian police struggle to reclaim Maoist zones -- Reuters
Indian troops 'close in on Maoists' -- Al Jazeera
India deploys troops against Maoists -- CNN
Police say suspected Maoist rebels kill 9 officers -- AP
Troops enter Maoist stronghold in eastern India -- AFP
Troops tackle Maoist rebellion in east India -- AFP
Indian security forces start operation against leftfwing rebels in West Bengal -- China View
Security forces advance into Maoist-held Lalgarh -- The Hindu