Naxalism to become history soon: Rajnath Singh
New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said the menace of Left Wing Extremism (LWE) is soon going to be history in India due to the tireless efforts of police and security forces.
The minister was speaking on the occasion of Police Commemoration Day. He laid a wreath and took a salute from a ceremonial guard at the National Police Memorial in central Delhi's Chanakyapuri.
"The success of the campaign against Naxalites can we assessed from the fact that the Maoists, who once took up arms against the state, are today surrendering and integrating themselves into the mainstream of development.
"Due to the tireless efforts of the security forces, this problem is now on the verge of becoming history. All our security personnel deserve to be congratulated for this," Singh said in his address to the troops.
The Centre has declared that the Naxal menace will end in India by March 2026.
"For a long time, Naxalism has been a problem for our internal security. There was a time when many districts in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra were affected by Naxalism. Schools in villages were closed, there were no roads and people lived in fear.
"We resolved to not let this problem persist any longer. The way our police, CRPF, BSF and local administration worked together in an organised manner is commendable," Singh said.
He said the regions that were once "Naxal hubs" are now turning into educational hubs.
The parts of India that were once "infamous" as the "red corridor" have now transformed into growth corridor. The government has been able to bring about such changes and for this to happen, police and security forces have made a "very significant" contribution, he said.
The minister also spoke about resources and budget for modernisation of police forces being provided by the Modi government.
Underlining the need for optimum utilisation of these "limited" resources, Singh said this can be achieved through coordination and integration among various security agencies.
He said in present times, the police not only has to fight crime but also "against perception".
Police Commemoration Day is observed every year in the memory of 10 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel who were killed on this day in 1959 in an ambush by Chinese troops in Ladakh's Hot Spring area.
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Odisha: Normalcy returns to violence-hit Malkangiri; internet services fully restored
Malkangiri (PTI): Normalcy returned to Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Monday, nearly a week after around 200 villages were damaged in violent clashes in a village, with the district administration fully restoring internet services, a senior official said.
Additional District Magistrate Bedabar Pradhan said internet services, suspended across the district on December 8 to curb the spread of rumours and misinformation following the clashes, were restored after the situation improved.
The suspension had been extended in phases till 12 noon on Monday.
The administration also withdrew prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita within a 10-km radius of MV-26 village, where arson incidents were reported on December 7 and December 8.
Though the violence was confined to two villages, tension had gripped the entire district, as the incident took the form of a clash between local tribals and Bengali settlers following the recovery of a headless body of a woman on December 4, officials said.
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The violence broke out after residents of Rakhelguda village allegedly set ablaze several houses belonging to Bengali residents, forcing hundreds to flee. The headless body of Lake Podiami (51), a woman from the Koya tribe, was recovered from the banks of the Poteru river on December 4, while her head was found six days later at a location about 15 km away.
Officials said the district administration held several rounds of discussions with representatives of the tribal and Bengali communities, following which both sides agreed to maintain peace.
Relief and rehabilitation work has since been launched at MV-26 village, with preliminary assessment pegging property damage at around Rs 3.8 crore.
A two-member ministerial team headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo visited the affected village, interacted with officials and locals, and submitted a report to the chief minister.
So far, 18 people have been arrested in connection with the violence, the officials said, adding that despite the withdrawal of prohibitory orders and restoration of internet services, security forces, including BSF and CRPF personnel, continue to be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
On Sunday, Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi visited MV-26 and neighbouring Rakhelguda villages, and held discussions with members of both communities as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and restore peace.
More than two lakh Bengali-speaking Bangladeshis were rehabilitated by the Centre in Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts in 1968, and they currently reside in 124 villages of Malkangiri.
