Naxalism will be eliminated from India in 3 years: Rajnath Singh
Lucknow, Oct 7 : Home Minister Rajnath Singh Sunday said the menace of Left Wing Extremism (LWE) will be wiped out from the country in about three years.
Addressing troops of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) on the occasion of their 26th anniversary celebrations here, Singh said their action should be rapid and quick but never "reckless."
Singh, speaking at the CRPF camp here, said districts affected by Naxal violence in the country have come down to about 10-12 as compared to 126 some time back.
The day is not far, may be in a time period of 1-2 or 3 years, that the LWE will be eliminated from the country and this would happen due to your (CRPF) determination, courage and hard work and that of the state police forces, he said.
"I congratulate you on the kind of work you have done in the LWE theatre of the country," Singh said.
The minister said the force has killed 131 Maoists and militants this year while it has apprehended 1,278 of them and has effected 58 surrenders during the same time.
The home minister also asserted that Jammu and Kashmir, where the CRPF is deployed as the lead counter-militancy force, has been and will be an "inseparable" part of India.
Some youth there (J-K) have been misled into militancy, but this force has ensured security commendably, he said.
Talking about the specific role of the RAF, a special unit under the CRPF, during riots and protests, the home minister advised them to be prompt and rapid but never "reckless."
All the police forces are like civilised units and they should never do anything that will label them as "brutal."
One should know how to behave during crowd control and similar duties and should always know how much and when to use force, he said.
Singh's comments can be seen in the context of a recent incident in Uttar Pradesh's capital where a police jawan allegedly killed an unarmed MNC executive.
An RAF battalion has a strength of just over 1,000 personnel and it is equipped with gadgets and non-lethal weapons like pump action guns, tear smoke grenade launchers and others to enforce security and law and order in case of protests or riot-like situations.
The force is part of the Central Reserve Police Force, the country's largest paramilitary force or the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) with over 3 lakh personnel.
It was raised and made fully operational in October, 1992. It has ten battalions (of about 10,000) based in various parts of the country in order to cut down response time to counter an incident of trouble.
The ten existing RAF battalions are based in Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Aligarh, Coimbatore, Jamshedpur, Bhopal and Meerut.
Five of its new bases are in Jaipur, Varanasi, Mangaluru, Hajipur(Bihar) and Nuh (Haryana).
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Nearly 700 km of Karnataka rivers polluted; cities, towns depend on contaminated water
Shivamogga: A total of 693.75 of river stretches across Karnataka are polluted, and water from several of these rivers is being supplied to towns and cities, the State government informed the Legislative Assembly.
According to a report published by The New Indian Express on Monday, replying to an unstarred question by Thirthahalli MLA Araga Jnanendra during the winter session in Belagavi, Forest, Environment and Biodiversity Minister Eshwar Khandre said rivers are classified into five categories, P1 to P5, based on Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) levels, with P1 being the most polluted.
He reportedly said untreated domestic wastewater from urban and rural areas is the main reason for river pollution. Arkavati, Lakshana Teertha, Tungabhadra, Bhadra, Tunga, Cauvery, Kabini, Kagina, Krishna, Shimsha, Bheema and Netravati are the polluted rivers and so far, 112 polluted drainages along these rivers have been identified.
Khandre explained that rivers are classified into five pollution categories P1 to P5. The Arkavati River has been placed in the P1 category, while no rivers fall under P2 and P3. Tungabhadra, Bhadra and Shimsha are categorised under P4, and eight other rivers fall under P5.
Khandre allegedly said domestic wastewater from municipalities, towns and villages along riverbeds is being discharged into at least 17 rivers, identified by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). This is the primary cause of river pollution.
According to the report, the minister said drinking water is being supplied from polluted rivers in districts such as Mandya, Ramanagara, Vijayapura and Shivamogga. In parts of Uttara Kannada, Ballari, Vijayanagara and Bagalkot, local bodies are also drawing water from polluted river sources.
In 2022-23, CPCB identified South Pinakini, Aghanashini, Sharavathi and Gangavali rivers too as polluted. But wrote to CPCB, stating that these rivers are not polluted and sought their removal from the list. An action plan is being prepared for the South Pinakini River, he said.
On remedial measures, Khandre reportedly said the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board is setting up sewage treatment plants as per the directions of National Green Tribunal.
As per the report, under 12 river rejuvenation plans, the state generates 817.31 million litres per day (MLD) of sewage. While 41 STPs with a capacity of 614.1 MLD are operational, 203.21 MLD of sewage remains untreated.
Work is underway to establish 19 STPs with a capacity of 248.91 MLD, while 39 more STPs with a combined capacity of 357.92 MLD are in the planning stage. Progress is being monitored and reported regularly to the NGT and the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti.
The minister reportedly said the state government gave its approval for underground drainage works worth Rs 535.56 crore in 2021 for 24 cities/towns besides Rs 523.80 crore for nine UGD projects.
