The location tracker of a CRPF party which was ambushed by a large group of armed Naxals, guerrillas of battalion one of Maoists in Kistaram forest in Chhattisgarh’s south Bastar district of Sukma on March 13, had gone viral in social media barely a few minutes after the encounter. (Representational image)

Bhopal: The recent incidents of leakage of location tracker used by counterinsurgency forces in Chhattisgarh’s conflict zone of Bastar in social media have caused concern for the security establishment.

The location tracker of a CRPF party which was ambushed by a large group of armed Naxals, guerrillas of battalion one of Maoists in Kistaram forest in Chhattisgarh’s south Bastar district of Sukma on March 13, had gone viral in social media barely a few minutes after the encounter.

Around four hours later, a mine protected vehicle (MPV) carrying another group of CRPF jawans, was blown up by a powerful improvised explosive device (IED) triggered by Maoists in the same area, killing nine troopers and grievously wounding two others. “It was yet to be known if an overenthusiastic jawan had made the location tracker of the security forces engaged in the encounter viral in the social media or a lower level cadre of security forces had done it.

Whatever may be the case, making location tracker of security forces viral in social media, knowingly or unknowingly, amounted to breach of security protocol. If the location tracker was leaked in social media to expose the security forces in the battle ground to the threat of attacks by Maoists, then it was a matter of serious concern”, Kondagaon district superintendent of police (SP) in south Bastar region Abhishek Pallav told this newspaper on Friday.

This was the second time in the past one month, the location tracker of security forces engaged in encounter in Sukma district was “leaked”, he added.

On February 18 this year, two policemen were killed and six others injured when Maoists ambushed a search party of the STF.