Over 13000 Nepalis have lost their lives in the conflict since 1996, a report published by a leading human rights group said as the Maoist insurgency marked its 10th anniversary on Monday.

Altogether 13092 people have died since the onset of the Maoist ‘people’s war’ on February 13, 1996, till February 11, 2006, according to Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC), a human rights NGO. The security forces have been responsible for 8417 deaths while the Maoists killed 4676 persons. INSEC report revealed that majority of those killed during the insurgency were political activists while 2046 security personnel including 706 army men were killed during this period.

Of 5924 political workers who lost their lives during the conflict, 5500 were killed at the hands of the security forces while the Maoists killed 424 political workers. 2027 agricultural workers and 472 general people died in conflict in the past 10 years, according to the report. Likewise, 141 teachers, 331 students 567 civil servants, 127 business people, 10 journalists, 13 social workers, six health workers and two law professionals also lost their lives in the deadly conflict between the state and the Maoist rebels while the number of victims whose identity has not been revealed stands at 1189.

While 22 people died in the first year of the Maoist rebellion in 1996, year 2002 saw a shocking growth in terms of loss of lives after the declaration of the state of emergency — for the first time after the breakdown of the government-Maoist peace talks. That year alone, 4602 people were killed with 3296 people losing their lives at the hands of the security forces. The number of killings surged drastically since the royal move of 4th October 2002 to 11 February 2006, the report reveals. During this period, 7296 people died with an average of 5.4 persons losing their lives every day.

Similarly, 1846 persons lost their lives in the year 2003 while 2921 and 163 people died in the conflict in 2004 and 2005 respectively. INSEC report indicates that 174 people have lost in this year.

The insurgency has gripped 73 out of the 75 districts – save for the mountainous districts of Manang and Mustang where no violent incidents have been reported till date. Mid-western districts like Rukum, Rolpa, Dang, Salyan and some far-western districts like Banke, Bardiya and Kailali have been badly hit by the violence although violent clashes resulting in deaths have occurred in 73 districts of all five development regions. Rukum, one of the Maoist hotbeds, tops the list in human casualties with 951 people killed there in the past 10 years and Rolpa ranks second in the list with 782 deaths there.

According to the INSEC report, 90 persons have been killed – 60 of them at the hands of Maoists – in violent incidents in the capital, Kathmandu, while 55 and 28 people died in Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts respectively. The emergence of violence in the Kathmandu Valley was witnessed mainly after the breakdown of first round of peace talks, the report states.