New Delhi, February 19 A fresh review of the regions affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) has reduced the number of affected districts in the country to seven from eight, a development that aligns with the Union government's declaration of ending the Naxal threat by March 2026.
The Ministry of Home Affairs has recently issued the new categorization to all Naxal-affected states, effective from February 9, according to officials.
A comprehensive review of the "National Policy and Action Plan to Address LWE" was recently undertaken by the Union government, analyzing 38 districts across nine states, including Jharkhand, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana, and West Bengal.
The last such review was held in December 2025.
The national action plan regulates resources allocated to these states and districts under two broad categories of Security-Related Expenditure. These are "LWE-affected districts" and "thrust districts".
The "LWE-affected districts" have three further sub-categories.
According to the new classification, the "LWE-affected districts," where Naxal violence and activities are still being reported, have been reduced to seven from eight recognized in the December 2025 review.
These seven districts are Bijapur, Narayanapur, Sukma, Kanker, and Dantewada in Chhattisgarh; West Singhbhum in Jharkhand, and Kandhamal in Odisha.
There are three sub-categories to LWE-affected districts: "most affected districts," "districts of concern," and "other LWE-affected districts."
The "most affected districts" continue to be Bijapur, Narayanpur, and Sukma in Chhattisgarh.
There are two "districts of concern," where Naxalism is waning, but focused deployment of resources is still required. These are Kanker in Chhattisgarh and West Singhbhum in Jharkhand.
The "other LWE-affected districts" category has seen a reduction of one district from December 2025. Currently, there are two districts in this category: Dantewada in Chhattisgarh and Kandhamal in Odisha.
Under the "thrust districts" category, there are 31 districts across nine states, compared to 30 in December 2025.
According to the home ministry's definition, "thrust districts" are those that are prospective sites for Naxal expansion and therefore require continued support.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has repeatedly asserted that the Naxal threat, once considered the biggest internal security challenge for India in 2010, will end by March of this year.
Shah had described Naxal violence as a challenge to democracy, saying that it has claimed the lives of around 17,000 civilians and security personnel.