Any IAF use to fight Naxals must avoid collateral damage: Naik

Allahabad, April 12 (PTI) Asserting that it was always
ready to face any challenge to the country's internal
security, the Indian Air Force Monday said any decision on use
of air power to tackle the Naxals must follow a clear strategy
to minimise collateral damage.
At the same time, he said his personal view was that
the armed forces were not required to fight the Maoists.
"We have the capability to conduct strikes with utmost
precision. However, it must be understood that if a 250 kg
bomb is dropped at a spot, its impact will be in a radius of
at least 800 metres and that may affect many people who may
not themselves be insurgents", India's Air Chief Marshal P V
Naik told reporters here.
"If at all a situation arises where the use of Air
Force becomes inevitable, there has to be a clarity on the
magnitude of the force we are supposed to use so that the
collateral damage is minimum.
"After all, we are dealing with our own people in our
own territory", the IAF chief said.
Replying to a query, he said, "So far we have not been
approached by the Home Ministry for any type of help in
combating Naxalites".
To another question, the Air Chief Marshal pointed to
an interview to a news channel during which he had said that
armed forces were not yet needed to fight Naxals. "I
personally still hold the view," he said.
"We would, however, like to add that even though not
involved in active combat, the Indian Air Force has done its
bit by conducting reconnaissance of Naxal-infested areas and
sharing the inputs with the governments concerned", he said.
He, however, replied in the negative when asked
whether the IAF had provided the Chattisgarh government with
any inputs prior to the Dantewada massacre and, said, "We had
deployed UAVs in the tribal state a couple of years ago and
provided inputs at that time.
"Those inputs could not have been of use at this time
as at present we are not conducting any reconnaissance in that
region," he said.(MORE) PTI