The Odisha police have reached out to law enforcement agencies in seven states — Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Bihar, and West Bengal — to locate and recover weapons that were looted by Maoists from Odisha in 1992 and 2001. Many of these arms have been subsequently seized in operations conducted by those states, and the Odisha police are now seeking their return.
Scale of the Weapon Looting and Recovery
Between 1992 and 2022, Maoists executed multiple attacks on security establishments in Odisha, stealing a total of 1,540 weapons. The stolen arsenal includes light machine guns, self-loading rifles (SLRs), .303 rifles, AK-47 and Insas rifles, sten guns, carbines, pistols, and revolvers. To date, Odisha police have managed to recover approximately 975 of these weapons, with at least 230 recovered from outside the state.
Specific Weapons Still Missing
Among the unrecovered arms are 29 weapons stolen from Malkangiri district: 18 .303 rifles, two self-loading rifles, three AK-47 assault rifles, three 9mm sten guns, one 51mm mortar, one VLP signal pistol, and one 1.5CP riot gun. These were taken during attacks on Chitrakonda police station on March 17, 1992, and Kalimela police station on August 10, 2001.
Sanjeeb Panda, Additional Director General (Anti-Naxal Operations), stated, “We have learned that 29 weapons stolen from Malkangiri district in 1992 and 2001 were later seized in different states. Detailed specifications of these arms have been shared with police in seven states as well as CRPF and BSF. We have requested them to verify seized weapons and facilitate their return.”
Coordination and Recovery Efforts
Akhileshvar Singh, Deputy Inspector General (Special Intelligence Wing), is coordinating with other states and paramilitary units to expedite the recovery. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has prioritized the backtracking of these weapons, following directives from Union Home Minister Amit Shah. States have been asked to compile databases of looted and recovered arms and share information to help identify and return the weapons to their rightful state. Each police weapon carries a unique body and butt number, enabling precise identification.
“After eliminating Naxals by March 31, our prime focus now is to ensure that all remaining looted arms are traced back to Odisha. We are confident of achieving this target soon,” Panda added.
Preventing Misuse and Revival of Extremism
Officials emphasized that recovery is critical to prevent misuse and block any possibility of Left-Wing Extremism revival. Police also suspect that Maoists may have hidden arms underground in forested areas, and search operations are underway to locate them.
