In Gadchiroli, a room to remember those killed in anti-Maoist operations

Dating back to the first casualty in 1991, pictures of the martyrs cover three of four walls and almost both sides of a standalone gallery in the centre. “We have lost 66 personnel in bomb blasts,” a senior police officer said. Ambush and counter-operations account for the other deaths, he added.

The deceased policemen were on way to Purada police station when they were killed in IED blast. (Express Photo)

Inspector General of Police (Prisons) Rajavardhan, who was SP (Gadchiroli) in 2003 when the room was opened, said the idea behind it was to have a dedicated space for the police personnel and their families and visitors to pay their respects. “We wanted to create a space where youngsters draw inspiration and understand why police personnel sacrifice their lives in the fight against Naxalism. It was also meant to be a way for families of the martyrs to see the pictures of their near and dear ones,” he said.

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The first picture to be put up at that time belongs to one of the youngest policemen to lose his life in the decades-long violence. Constable Danu Mattami was just 20 when he was killed in an ambush in the jungles of Kotami village in Etapalli taluka on June 20, 1991.

According to a police officer, the pictures of the police personnel used in the martyrs’ room were taken when they had joined the force. Following their deaths in the line of duty, the pictures were sent to a photo studio in Chandrapur city, where they were enlarged, edited and framed before being sent back to Gadchiroli. In a formal ceremony, the SP and other officials perform a puja and garland the picture.

The site of the attack in Gadchiroli on Wednesday. (Express)

With the Tricolour superimposed behind each picture, one of the captions reads: “Our respectful salutations on attaining martyrdom in Naxal violence that took place at Nayanwadi-Khandi Road in the limits of PS Brahmagad”, in the case of Constable Paldeo Sadmek. who was killed on August 7, 1997.

The frames, which have been placed chronologically as far as possible, also indicate some of the bloodiest years of the conflict. “2009 was the worst year in terms of police casualties,” an officer said, referring to Maoists firing at a police patrol party in Hatti Goda hill in Dhanora taluka in May 2009 killing 16 police personnel.

In February that year, Maoists also fired at and killed 15 policemen, including a young sub-inspector in Markegaon.