Naxalite or Naxalism is an informal name given to communist groups that were born out of the Sino-Soviet split in the communist movement in India. Ideologically they belong to various trends of Maoism. Initially the movement had its centre in West Bengal. In recent years, they have spread into less developed areas of rural central and eastern India, such as Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh through the activities of underground groups like the Communist Party of India (Maoist). They are conducting an insurgency, typically called the Naxalite-Maoist insurgency. Naxals hold sway in about 180 districts across ten states of India accounting for about 40 percent of India's geographical area,They are are especially concentrated in an area known as the "Red corridor", where they control 92,000 square kilometers.According to India's intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, 20,000 Naxalites were in April 2006 in operation,and their growing influence prompted Indian Prime Minister Manm... more