District Reserve Guard

The District Reserve Guard (DRG), also known as the District Reserve Group, is a specialized police unit formed in 2008 in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh to address left-wing extremism, particularly the Maoist insurgency. The unit was established as a response to the growing influence and violence of Maoist groups, which have historically taken advantage of the socio-economic conditions of local tribal populations. The DRG is often referred to as the "son of the soil" due to its composition of local recruits.

History

The unit was initially set up in the Kanker and Narayanpur districts in 2008. In 2013, the force was expanded to the Bijapur and Bastar districts, followed by deployments in Sukma and Kondagaon in 2014, and in Dantewada in 2015. The DRG was created to utilize local knowledge for effective counter-insurgency efforts.

The DRG has been involved in various operations targeting Maoist networks. In 2015, it conducted 644 anti-Naxal operations, both independently and with other state and paramilitary forces, resulting in the deaths of 46 Maoist combatants. By mid-2018, 144 operations conducted by the DRG led to 25 Maoist fatalities without casualties among security forces.

As of 2018, the DRG's deployment included 482 personnel in Sukma, one of the most heavily affected districts, and 312 in the adjacent Bijapur district.

The 2023 Dantewada bombing, a Maoist attack in Dantewada district on April 26, killed 10 DRG personnel and a civilian driver. It was the first major casualties for the DRG in the Bastar region.