COBRA stands for commando battalion for resolute action. It is one of the few specialized unit of the CRPF (Central Armed Police Force) which was found in September 2008 to counter the Naxalite activities in our country. They are specially trained in Guerilla Warfare. The Cobra has 10 units at present. They are the continuous winner of Best CCRPF Anniversary Parade of the years 2009 2010 and 2011.
They are trained in formed to hunt and eliminate Naxalite groups. For this matter, they require high end weapons which is set up by an amount of 1300 crore from the central government. In fact, the COBRA is the best equipped Central Armed Police unit. They are provided with INSAS rifles, AK rifles, X95- which is a stand-alone extremely compact weapon specifically designed for Special Forces units, Browning High Power- which is a single action semi-automatic pistol and Glock pistols. They also have Heckler and Koch MP5 and Carl Gustav recoilless rifle. While the first one is a 9mm submachine gun, the latter is a 84 mm man-portable reusable multi-role recoilless rifle. Cobras also have hi-tech electronic surveillance equipment and well-trained sniper teams, armed with Dragunov SVD, Mauser SP66 and Heckler & Koch MSG-90 sniper rifles. These prove very helpful in the terrain in which the COBRA unit has to function.
COBRAs are trained in the Army’s elite Counter Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School in Mizoram and CRPF’s anti-terrorist school in Silchar. They are adept in the art of camouflage and jungle warfare. COBRA members are assigned to an Army unit for six months following their basic training. After this, they may be assigned to counter-Naxal activities.
With the motto of “ Victory or Death” , the COBRA member have killed 61 naxal and apprehended 866 suspects while recovering huge amounts of weaponry have proved their worth and have played key role in maintaining peace in our Nation.
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