![\"maoist](\"http:\/\/d.yimg.com\/a\/p\/afp\/20100407\/capt.photo_1270637949843-2-0.jpg?x=400&y=258&q=85&sig=CGM01rrvvv3CAzjRw7p92w--\")
An attack by Maoist rebels in the Eastern Indian state of Chhattisgarh resulted in the deaths of 76 policemen. According to officials more than 500 Maoist guerrillas, known as Naxalites, were involved in a carefully planned trap that involved sophisticated weapons, grenades, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The death toll from the incident was the largest in the 43 year history of the insurgency. Claiming to speak on behalf of India’s poor and exploited, the Naxalites derive their name from the West Bengal state of Naxalbari where they originated, and have a presence in at least 20 out of India’s 28 states. The Indian government has promised a strong response with Home Minister Gopal Pillai pledging to “hunt everyone down.” Last year the government launched an aggressive campaign dubbed Operation Green Hunt in the northern and eastern strongholds of the Naxalite rebels. Yesterday’s attack is speculated to be a response to that campaign. Thousands of people including rebels, law enforcement officials, and innocent civilians, have been killed over the years in clashes between the Indian government and the Maoist rebels. <\/p>\n
GUEST: Vijay Prashad is the George and Martha Kellner Chair of South Asian History, Professor and Director of the International Studies Program at Trinity College, Hartford, CT. He is the author of a dozen books, including The Darker Nations: A People’s History of the Third World<\/em><\/p>\n Vijay Prashad recommends the following sources of information: <\/p>\n