The force, which numbers around 2,000, moves around in small bands of 15-25 commandos. They are specially trained for deep forest pursuit and combat.

Over the past two years, the rebel ranks have fallen from around 1,000 hardcore members to some 400 today, according to YSR.

'As I have been stressing, Naxal (Maoist) politics revolves around rural and land related issues. Hence, a streamlined strategy and a national agenda are also required to deal with the problem,' YSR had said.

In 2006, Maoist rebels killed high profile political leaders, including Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader T. Nageswar Rao and Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) district committee leader Rupu Reddy Ravinder Reddy.

Last year, former chief minister N. Janardhan Reddy and his wife Rajyalakshmi escaped unhurt while three Congress workers were killed in a Maoist attack in Nellore district.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has on several occasions referred to the Maoist threat as the country's most serious internal security challenge. Home ministry reports indicate that armed Maoists numbering nearly 10,000 have a presence in 170 districts in 15 states of the country, as of now, and spreading far and wide.

YSR also said he did not want to initiate peace talks with the armed rebels as he had done in September 2004. 'They refuse to lay down their arms. It won't work if I start another round,' he added.