In a formal diplomatic communication that coincides notably with the official tour of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to Chhattisgarh, the US Embassy and Consulates in India has issued a Level-2 travel advisory urging its citizens to exercise increased caution while travelling across India. The advisory, posted on the Embassy’s official website and issued as part of its ongoing threat assessment protocol, places rural parts of Chhattisgarh under the “Do Not Travel” classification, citing sustained Maoist insurgency and repeated attacks on Indian government personnel.

 

According to the advisory, Maoist extremist groups – commonly referred to as Naxalites – remain active in a wide corridor extending from eastern Maharashtra and northern Telangana through western West Bengal, with rural Chhattisgarh at the core of this high-risk zone. It notes that attacks against officers of the Indian government continue to occur sporadically, targeting local police, paramilitary forces, and civil officials operating in areas bordering Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. The advisory further stipulates that US Government employees must obtain prior authorisation before visiting any non-capital area in the aforesaid states. Capitals remain exempt under current protocol.

 

The document also states that the US Government has limited ability to provide emergency services in these regions due to terrain, infrastructural, and operational constraints. Within Chhattisgarh, districts such as Dantewada, Sukma, Bijapur, and Kanker – long embroiled in counter-insurgency operations – are implicitly included in this advisory classification. The Embassy discourages solo travel, especially for women, and warns against the use of satellite phones and GPS devices, which are restricted under Indian law. The advisory, anchored in field intelligence and regional threat mapping, closes with standard cautionary measures, but its implication is unmistakable: that parts of India’s interior, particularly in Chhattisgarh, remain volatile despite prolonged state intervention.

 

The travel advisory quickly escalated into a political slugfest on X (formerly Twitter). Former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel fired the first salvo: “Is this the ‘Amrit Kaal’ the government speaks of? The U.S. has warned its citizens not to visit six Indian states, including our own. So much for global friendship and internal safety.” In a follow-up post, the BJP’s official handle added: “Congress is now dependent on foreign advisories for relevance. When a state records a rape every six hours and a murder every eight, perhaps imported outrage is all that’s left. This is propaganda outsourced to Washington.” The Chhattisgarh BJP responded with sharp counterfire. A firebrand BJP leader posted: “While such advisories are part of routine diplomatic safety measures, the timing of this one – released alongside Shah’s engagements in Maoist-affected territories – as sharpened both political and strategic interpretations.”