Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has said Maoism is like cancer and there is need to strike at its root to end the menace. In the last one year, security forces have killed more than 230 Maoists in various encounters, Sai said addressing a function on Monday after inaugurating and laying foundation stones of several development projects in Sukma. "Maoism is like cancer. If cancer has to be eradicated, it is necessary to attack its root. Maoists had stuck like leeches in some areas of Bastar and were exploiting the people by intimidating them. These places were their safest hideouts. We decided to attack Maoists by entering their den," a government release quoted Sai as saying. "Maoists had thrown Sukma along with Bastar division into deadly violence. Due to this, the development of Sukma was badly affected. In the last one year, the government took many important decisions to develop Sukma and has implemented them rapidly," he said. Under a well-planned strategy, police .