"The CRPF will devise new ways to fight Maoists," said V.K. Joshi, who took over this week as the new chief of the paramilitary force. But he denied that the CPRF lacked professionalism.

Joshi, who was earlier with the elite Intelligence Bureau for more than three decades, focused in his prior career more on intelligence-based operations against militants in Jammu & Kashmir. He will continue to head the Indo Tibetan Border Police while he runs the CRPF.

"ITBP guarded our borders with China, which is largely dormant. ... It would be a different ballgame altogether for me," he said.

Joshi said he would soon be visiting Chhattisgarh, the state that suffers most from Maoists violence. "My priorities have become totally different. The CRPF is tackling counterinsurgency operations in Jammu & Kashmir, (the) Northeast and Left-wing extremism across the length and breadth of the country. I will try and live up to the expectations," Joshi told reporters after taking the ceremonial guard-of-honor at the force's headquarters in New Delhi Monday.

The new CRPF chief said though Left-wing extremism was a major problem, the paramilitary force has been fighting it successfully for the last five years.