PIB Tracker'No district is LWE-affected': the Naxal map shrinks to zero
The Home Ministry told Parliament that no district in the country is now categorised as affected by Left-Wing Extremism — down from 126 districts in 2018 and eight in December 2025 — after nearly six decades of insurgency.
What happened
- The MHA told Parliament that no district is now categorised as LWE-affected.
- Affected districts fell from 126 to 90 (Apr 2018), 70 (Jul 2021), 38 (Apr 2024) and 8 (Dec 2025).
- It follows nearly six decades of Left-Wing Extremist violence.
- Credit was given to the 2015 National Policy and Action Plan — a whole-of-government approach.
- It combined security measures, development and rights and entitlements of local communities.
For Prelims
- LWE: Left-Wing Extremism (Naxalism) — once called India's biggest internal-security threat; no district is now categorised as affected.
- The decline: 126 → 90 (Apr 2018) → 70 (Jul 2021) → 38 (Apr 2024) → 8 (Dec 2025) → 0.
- National Policy and Action Plan (2015): a whole-of-government strategy — security, development and community rights.
- Seventh Schedule: 'Police' and 'Public Order' are State subjects; the Centre supplements state efforts.
- Central support: CAPFs, the Security Related Expenditure scheme, fortified police stations, road and telecom connectivity.
- Roots: the movement began at Naxalbari (1967), West Bengal, in an agrarian-grievance context.
For UPSC: A major internal-security item. Use it for Left-Wing Extremism and the development-versus-security debate, the 2015 National Policy and Action Plan, Centre-state coordination on policing (Seventh Schedule), and tribal rights as a driver of and answer to extremism.
What it is NOT: This is a change in the official categorisation of districts as 'LWE-affected' — a statement of the administrative status, not a claim that every armed cadre or root grievance has ceased to exist.
For Mains
Syllabus: GS3.16 · GS3.17 · Linkage L2
Anchor
The end of a six-decade insurgency map — no district is LWE-affected any more.
Substantiation (data)
Affected districts down from 126 to 90 (2018), 70 (2021), 38 (2024), 8 (Dec 2025) and now zero, under the 2015 National Policy and Action Plan.
Exemplification
A whole-of-government mix of CAPF deployment, fortified police stations, roads and telecom, plus development and rights guarantees.
Problematisation
Underlying grievances — land, forest rights, displacement and governance deficits — must be addressed or gains can reverse.
Way-forward
Sustain development, implement the Forest Rights Act and PESA in letter and spirit, and keep local governance and livelihoods strong.
Position
Security gains endure only when matched by development, rights and credible local governance.
Deploys into: Development & extremism + internal-security actors (GS3.16, GS3.17) · Left-Wing Extremism, the 2015 action plan, Centre-state policing and tribal rights.
Ministry of Home Affairs · 2026-07-29 · PRID 2291043 · PIB source ↗