Tribal Weekly Markets in Bastar Under Police Scanner After Recovery of Counterfeit Notes

Raipur: Security forces have started keeping a strict vigil on the tribal weekly markets in Bastar in Chhattisgarh to prevent Maoists from circulating counterfeit currency notes in the insurgency-hit region, police said on Tuesday.

The move comes amid recovery of fake currency notes of denominations of Rs 50, Rs 100, Rs 200 and Rs 500 along with printing machines and inks by security forces in a Naxal dump in a jungle in Sukma district under south Bastar in the state on Sunday.

Sources said that security forces have intensified vigilance on the tribal weekly markets particularly in remote Bastar to monitor movements of Maoists who may visit the markets to circulate the fake currency notes.

Sukma district superintendent of police Kiran Chavan has earlier said that Maoists were circulating the fake currencies through the weekly markets in remote Bastar since their sources of revenue have been choked by security forces.

However, it was yet to be established by the police as to what is the scale of circulation of fake currencies in Bastar by Maoists.

“Further probe is on into the matter. No one was arrested at the spot where the Naxal dump was found by the security forces. Arrest of a Maoist involved in the fake note printing and circulating operation will throw light on the matter”, Bastar range inspector general of police Sunderraj P told this newspaper on Tuesday.

He said that this was the first time; the counterfeit currency note printing unit of Maoists in Bastar was seized by security forces.

The Naxal dump in which huge quantities of counterfeit currency notes, colour printers and 200 bottles of ink used to print the notes was detected by security forces in the forest between Chintagufa and Kistaram in the district.

According to the Sumka SP, the Konta area committee of the outlawed CPI (Maoist) was operating the unit.