Maoist activity in seven eastern and central states is threatening at least $78 billion in natural-resource projects, brokerage CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets estimates. Beneath this region lies the ore in the Bailadila mines; 40 billion of India’s 46 billion tons of proven coal reserves; bauxite for aluminum; tin; and even diamonds. India’s expansion -- and its attempt to catch up to China in industrial prowess -- depends on unlocking this bounty.
- At the heart of the Bailadila Hills in central India lie 1.1 billion tons of raw ore so pure and plentiful that half a century after miners first hacked at it with pickaxes, it remains the richest, and one of the largest, iron deposits on the planet.
- Half hidden even to Indians, some 10,000 Maoists fighting over stretches of mineral-laden land hold a Portugal-sized swath of India known as the Red Corridor in their grip. From an area they call the Dandakaranya Regional Zone and neighboring forests, the rebels run their own schools and clinics, print their own books, fly their own flags -- and are stepping up their attacks.
- Maoists have some degree of influence in 220 of the nation’s 626 districts, the government estimates.
- “Try and understand, sir: What we want is a total eradication of the Indian government,” a man who says he’s involved with the Naxalites’ political wing said in a May interview with Bloomberg Markets in Jharkhand state. “A total eradication of the multinationals,” continued the man, who declined to have his name printed because he says he’s wanted by police. “Only then can we build a new society.”
Read whole story : http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-29/maoists-in-india-blow-up-pipelines-as-78-billion-in-resources-threatened.html
