Suspected Maoists abducted Koyyuru mandal parishad president and Congress leader Somaiah and one of his associates Lingaiah in the small hours of Sunday.
Reports reaching here said the kidnappers had not made any ransom demand yet. Superintendent of Police P. Vineet Brijlal told The Hindu that they suspected the involvement of the Maoists and efforts were on to free the hostages. A group of armed people reportedly visited Solabu and Mala Makaram hamlets in Koyyuru mandal, about 120 km from here and kidnapped the two persons.
(The Hindu)
____________
Hyderabad, Feb 7 (PTI) Two political activists, belonging to Congress and TDP, were abducted allegedly by Maoists in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pardesh today, police said.
Somaiah, Congress' Mandal president of Koyyuru and his friend Balaiah of TDP were allegedly kidnapped by four persons at Solabu village this morning, a senior police officer told PTI.
"We got information from the villagers that four persons suspected to be Maoists kidnapped Somaiah and Balaiah on the pretext of talking to them," the officer said, adding the police have launched combing operations in the area.
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Three CPI (Maoist) members nabbed
Lucknow, Feb 7 (PTI) Three suspected members of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) have been arrested by Uttar Pradesh Police's Special Task Force from Gorakhpur and Allahabad districts, a senior officer said here today.
"While a woman member was arrested in Gorakhpur last evening, two more were arrested from Allahabad district late last night," Additional Director General of Police (law and order) Brij Lal told reporters.
He said that over the last few days, information was being received from various agencies that senior and active members of the banned organisation were trying to establish their base in the state.
"STF, which was developing the information, was yesterday tipped off that Asha alias Hirman Munda, who was incharge of women sub-committee of CPI (M) in UP, was active in Gorakhpur," he said.
The ADG said the STF arrested Asha from Shahpura area of Gorakhpur last evening.
"While a woman member was arrested in Gorakhpur last evening, two more were arrested from Allahabad district late last night," Additional Director General of Police (law and order) Brij Lal told reporters.
He said that over the last few days, information was being received from various agencies that senior and active members of the banned organisation were trying to establish their base in the state.
"STF, which was developing the information, was yesterday tipped off that Asha alias Hirman Munda, who was incharge of women sub-committee of CPI (M) in UP, was active in Gorakhpur," he said.
The ADG said the STF arrested Asha from Shahpura area of Gorakhpur last evening.
Green Hunt: the anatomy of an operation
http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article101706.ece
AMAN SETHI
Away from the gaze of the media and the judiciary, the adivasis of Bastar are paying a heavy price … for just being there.
An operation is underway in Central India, but no one really knows what it is. Variously described as a media myth, a comprehensive hearts and minds strategy, and an all-out offensive by paramilitary forces and the state forces along the borders of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, Operation Green Hunt has become a shoebox of news clippings, police reports, public demonstrations and armed encounters.
Depending on the definition, Green Hunt either began in July 2009, September 2009 or November 2009. Speaking off record, senior policemen confirmed that the intensification of “search and comb” operations in Chhattisgarh began as early as July last year. In September 2009 the press reported on the progress of “Operation Green Hunt”: a massive 3 day joint operation in which the central CoBRA force and state police battled Naxal forces in Dantewada.
By November, the press was regularly reporting on the planning and progress of Green Hunt, prompting Home Minister, P. Chidambaram to term the operation a “media invention.” Since then, the security apparatus has scrupulously avoided all mention of Green Hunt. The week-long joint operation, launched on December 25 2009 in
CHANGE IN NOMENCLATURE
Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra for instance, was termed “Police Week.” The change in nomenclature could be prompted by a realisation that the battle between the state and the Naxals is unlikely to end anytime soon. Speaking on background, police sources confirm that the conflict shall take the form of “a prolonged, open-ended engagement” rather than a short, fierce “operation.”
There is also little clarity on the extent of troop deployment, the composition of the forces and the chain of command between central paramilitary forces and the state police. Privately, sources in the security apparatus admit that part of the confusion is by design rather than by default to control the information available to Naxal commanders. At present, the only information independently confirmed by The Hindu relates to the Bastar Zone, a 40,000 square kilometre area in Chhattisgarh that lies at heart of the battle. Sources state that 7 additional battalions of central forces have been moved in the area, bringing the strength of central forces in Bastar to a total 20 battalions including troops from the CRPF, ITBP, BSF and SSB. Taken alongside the 6,000 policemen deployed in Bastar, the size of the total fighting force in the zone is about 20,000 troops.
“The first step was to secure the roads. Ninety to ninety five per cent of casualties of security forces occur on the roads.” said T.J. Longkumer, Inspector General of Police, Bastar in an interview to this reporter. “We have started road security operations and indentified ambush prone areas.” It is the next step that is proving controversial. “Forces shall actively enter villages and nab naxal elements,” he added. Longkumer insists that search operations are conducted only on the basis of concrete intelligence and that all possible care is taken to minimise the death of innocents. However, information emerging from villages in the interior suggests otherwise.
Figures provided by the police suggest that a majority of police operations have targeted “Sanghams” with 499 sangham members arrested in 2009 – up from 214 in 2007. Sanghams refer to village level bodies installed by the Naxals in areas under their control. Sangham members are considered to be sympathetic to the Naxal cause, but it is important to note that sangham members are not necessarily armed. While the number of Naxals killed has also increased to 113 in 2009, as compared to 66 in 2008, and the number of civilian deaths attributed to Naxal violence has reduced from 143 in 2008 to 116 in 2009, Chhattisgarh does not keep any record of civilians killed by the security forces. Police sources cite this as validation of the state’s efforts to minimise civilian casualties, but sceptics see this as tautology where all those killed by the police are retrospectively termed Naxals.
Two PILs pending in the Supreme Court since 2007 have highlighted precisely this problem, asking for an inquiry into killings, rapes and murders since 2005. They have provided an initial list of over 500 people killed, and subsequently pointed to discrepancies in the police version and the FIRs filed. Initially, the bodies were not even counted; now they are recorded as Naxalites killed in encounters. The NHRC, which investigated a small sample of the killings on the orders of the Court, noted with respect to the sangham members: “These villagers were specifically targeted when Salwa Judum was on the rise. The enquiry team has come across instances where some of these villagers were even killed (no criminal cases were, however, either reported or registered). Though the State has taken action against SPOs in some cases for violations like murder and attempt to murder, but these cases do not pertain to the violence let loose on innocent villagers during operations against Naxalites.”
Despite the gravity and urgency of the situation, there has been no hearing of this case for over a year now, because a suitable ‘non-miscellaneous’ day has not been available. Not surprisingly, allegations of unlawful killing continue to dog the state authorities. A writ petition filed in the Supreme Court last year implicates the Chhattisgarh police in the deaths of a total of 12 villagers in Gachanpalli and Gompad villages as part of “sanitisation” operations in September last year. As reported previously in The Hindu, the Chhattisgarh police have assumed control over at least four of the 13 petitioners, and have actively prevented them from meeting their lawyer. Witnesses to the Gompad incident have accused the police of killing innocents at random.
FLUID IDENTITIES
On the other side, on January 21 2010 local newspapers reported the killing of two “police informers”, one a 16 to 18 year old tribal youth, in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district. Police sources cited in the story attributed the killing to the Eastern Bastar Division Committee of the Naxals. At a press conference in Raipur, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram stated that the two youth were killed as they wanted to join the Indian Army.
As the battle-lines between the Naxals and the State shift with every jungle encounter, adivasis across the zone of operations are forced to assume a series of fluid identities contingent on the force in power on a given day.
In a police operation with no clear name, timeline or goal, fought against a guerrilla force that rarely wears uniforms, the adivasis are learning that each side extracts a heavy price for supporting the other.
AMAN SETHI
Away from the gaze of the media and the judiciary, the adivasis of Bastar are paying a heavy price … for just being there.
An operation is underway in Central India, but no one really knows what it is. Variously described as a media myth, a comprehensive hearts and minds strategy, and an all-out offensive by paramilitary forces and the state forces along the borders of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, Operation Green Hunt has become a shoebox of news clippings, police reports, public demonstrations and armed encounters.
Depending on the definition, Green Hunt either began in July 2009, September 2009 or November 2009. Speaking off record, senior policemen confirmed that the intensification of “search and comb” operations in Chhattisgarh began as early as July last year. In September 2009 the press reported on the progress of “Operation Green Hunt”: a massive 3 day joint operation in which the central CoBRA force and state police battled Naxal forces in Dantewada.
By November, the press was regularly reporting on the planning and progress of Green Hunt, prompting Home Minister, P. Chidambaram to term the operation a “media invention.” Since then, the security apparatus has scrupulously avoided all mention of Green Hunt. The week-long joint operation, launched on December 25 2009 in
CHANGE IN NOMENCLATURE
Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra for instance, was termed “Police Week.” The change in nomenclature could be prompted by a realisation that the battle between the state and the Naxals is unlikely to end anytime soon. Speaking on background, police sources confirm that the conflict shall take the form of “a prolonged, open-ended engagement” rather than a short, fierce “operation.”
There is also little clarity on the extent of troop deployment, the composition of the forces and the chain of command between central paramilitary forces and the state police. Privately, sources in the security apparatus admit that part of the confusion is by design rather than by default to control the information available to Naxal commanders. At present, the only information independently confirmed by The Hindu relates to the Bastar Zone, a 40,000 square kilometre area in Chhattisgarh that lies at heart of the battle. Sources state that 7 additional battalions of central forces have been moved in the area, bringing the strength of central forces in Bastar to a total 20 battalions including troops from the CRPF, ITBP, BSF and SSB. Taken alongside the 6,000 policemen deployed in Bastar, the size of the total fighting force in the zone is about 20,000 troops.
“The first step was to secure the roads. Ninety to ninety five per cent of casualties of security forces occur on the roads.” said T.J. Longkumer, Inspector General of Police, Bastar in an interview to this reporter. “We have started road security operations and indentified ambush prone areas.” It is the next step that is proving controversial. “Forces shall actively enter villages and nab naxal elements,” he added. Longkumer insists that search operations are conducted only on the basis of concrete intelligence and that all possible care is taken to minimise the death of innocents. However, information emerging from villages in the interior suggests otherwise.
Figures provided by the police suggest that a majority of police operations have targeted “Sanghams” with 499 sangham members arrested in 2009 – up from 214 in 2007. Sanghams refer to village level bodies installed by the Naxals in areas under their control. Sangham members are considered to be sympathetic to the Naxal cause, but it is important to note that sangham members are not necessarily armed. While the number of Naxals killed has also increased to 113 in 2009, as compared to 66 in 2008, and the number of civilian deaths attributed to Naxal violence has reduced from 143 in 2008 to 116 in 2009, Chhattisgarh does not keep any record of civilians killed by the security forces. Police sources cite this as validation of the state’s efforts to minimise civilian casualties, but sceptics see this as tautology where all those killed by the police are retrospectively termed Naxals.
Two PILs pending in the Supreme Court since 2007 have highlighted precisely this problem, asking for an inquiry into killings, rapes and murders since 2005. They have provided an initial list of over 500 people killed, and subsequently pointed to discrepancies in the police version and the FIRs filed. Initially, the bodies were not even counted; now they are recorded as Naxalites killed in encounters. The NHRC, which investigated a small sample of the killings on the orders of the Court, noted with respect to the sangham members: “These villagers were specifically targeted when Salwa Judum was on the rise. The enquiry team has come across instances where some of these villagers were even killed (no criminal cases were, however, either reported or registered). Though the State has taken action against SPOs in some cases for violations like murder and attempt to murder, but these cases do not pertain to the violence let loose on innocent villagers during operations against Naxalites.”
Despite the gravity and urgency of the situation, there has been no hearing of this case for over a year now, because a suitable ‘non-miscellaneous’ day has not been available. Not surprisingly, allegations of unlawful killing continue to dog the state authorities. A writ petition filed in the Supreme Court last year implicates the Chhattisgarh police in the deaths of a total of 12 villagers in Gachanpalli and Gompad villages as part of “sanitisation” operations in September last year. As reported previously in The Hindu, the Chhattisgarh police have assumed control over at least four of the 13 petitioners, and have actively prevented them from meeting their lawyer. Witnesses to the Gompad incident have accused the police of killing innocents at random.
FLUID IDENTITIES
On the other side, on January 21 2010 local newspapers reported the killing of two “police informers”, one a 16 to 18 year old tribal youth, in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district. Police sources cited in the story attributed the killing to the Eastern Bastar Division Committee of the Naxals. At a press conference in Raipur, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram stated that the two youth were killed as they wanted to join the Indian Army.
As the battle-lines between the Naxals and the State shift with every jungle encounter, adivasis across the zone of operations are forced to assume a series of fluid identities contingent on the force in power on a given day.
In a police operation with no clear name, timeline or goal, fought against a guerrilla force that rarely wears uniforms, the adivasis are learning that each side extracts a heavy price for supporting the other.
Chavan seeks UAV, satellite phones to tackle Naxals
New Delhi, Feb 7 (PTI) Maharahstra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan today sought the Centre's help in acquiring the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and satellite phones for the state police to tackle Naxalites in remote and dense forests areas.
Chavan, speaking at the Chief Ministers' Conference on Internal Security, sought the Centre's support "in acquiring latest equipment like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) and satellite phones which would be of immense use in the remote and dense forest areas frequented by naxal dalams (groups)."
"Permit us to buy the Iridium satellite phones, which are very handy and have a very good range as against InmarSat phone which are not user friendly at all in difficult forest conditions," he said.
UAVs have been used by American forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan to locate and launch an air assault on the militants
Chavan, speaking at the Chief Ministers' Conference on Internal Security, sought the Centre's support "in acquiring latest equipment like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) and satellite phones which would be of immense use in the remote and dense forest areas frequented by naxal dalams (groups)."
"Permit us to buy the Iridium satellite phones, which are very handy and have a very good range as against InmarSat phone which are not user friendly at all in difficult forest conditions," he said.
UAVs have been used by American forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan to locate and launch an air assault on the militants
Modi praises Centre for improved handling of internal security
By ANI
February 7th, 2010
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday praised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram for their bold initiative in tackling terrorism and improving the security scenario in the country.
Interacting with media on the sidelines of Chief Ministers’ Conference on internal security, Modi praised Singh for his inclusive approach on terror.
Modi also added that Chidambaram has been extremely swift and positive in tackling terror.
“Security is of prime concern in our country and there are two ways of tackling this issue. Firstly, by increasing the strength of our security forces and secondly, by increasing the judicial strength,” he said.
“While Manmohan Singh has been in the seat of PM, these issues of terror are being tackled. Also, the Ministry of Home Affairs under P Chidambaram has been extremely positive and swift. We are now getting positive and speedier response from the Centre over terror issue,” Modi added.
Modi’s reaction came as a surprise, as earlier this month the Union Home Ministry urged President Pratibha Patil to reject the controversial Gujarat Control of Orgnised Crime Act (GUJCOCA).
It has already created bitter debate between the Centre and Gujarat and turned into a political battle to make into reality.
Earlier Modi had blamed the Centre for not approving it because the state is running by the opposition and they don’t want to let them to take any initiative in this regard while the similar law is implemented in the Maharashtra state which ruled by the Congress Government.
On other hand, Home Ministry had rejected the allegations and raised objection over some points in the draft as he recommended deleting of its two provisions in the draft. (ANI)
IANS
NEW DELHI: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said that there was need to strengthen laws dealing with the country's internal
security.
While addressing the chief ministers' conference on internal security convened by the government here, Modi said internal security threatened by organised crime and terrorism needed to be confronted with a strong resolve which should not be limited to physically strengthening the law enforcement mechanism.
"Our policy decisions and laws to deal with such issues should have enough teeth. The biggest issue concerning internal security, to my mind, is lack of adequate legal provisions to support our efforts," he said.
Modi's remarks came in the backdrop of the central government's refusal to give its nod to the president to sign the controversial Gujarat Control of Organised Crime Bill passed by the state assembly.
The chief minister has on earlier occasions criticised the central government for opposing certain provisions in the bill, saying they were similar to the existing laws in Maharashtra and Karnataka. The central government had suggested some amendments to the bill.
In his speech, Modi referred to the dossiers sent to Pakistan on the involvement of "people and state agencies" in the Nov 26, 2008 Mumbai terror attack.
He said the country should build its inherent strength and institutional mechanisms so that "we do not have to rely upon external forces for bringing perpetrators of crime against our people within our country to book".
"It is important that not only are we strong but are also perceived to be strong by subversive elements within and outside India," he said.
He said that the National Investigation Agency Act had powers of taking over investigation in FICN (Fake Indian Currency Note) offences and there was no need for asking the state governments to give general consent for Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into such crimes.
"Did the government try to look at the track record of CBI in investigating offences which it is seized with?" he said.
Modi said the agenda for the conference did not include action taken on deliberations of previous meetings. He said his government was committed to building a mechanism to ensure that all criminal cases in the state were disposed off within 12 months.
Orissa Chief Minister seeks central funds for modernisation of police force
New Delhi: Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today attended the Conference of Chief Ministers convened to discuss various issues relating to internal security at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi. The Conference was inaugurated by Dr. Manmohan Singh, Hon'ble Prime Minister of India and attended by Union Home Minister Shri P. Chidambaram, Chief Ministers and others.
CM highlighted various measures taken by the State Government to deal with the situation by drawing upon the State's own resources as well as from Central Schemes such as Modernization of Police Forces, Security Related Expenditure and Special Infrastructure Schemes.
He stated that the State's Budget allotment for the police has doubled over the last couple of years. To augment capacity of the State Police force, five Special Security Battalions have been raised and a new Basic Constabulary Training Academy has been sanctioned, he informed. Further, more than 100 new Police Stations have been set up in the last couple of years and the existing ones have been strengthened and equipped with modern arms and communication equipment.
He stated that the State Government has completed raising of the Special Operation Group, a dedicated anti-Naxalite force of about 2000 in the last two years and it is now carrying out regular operations in the affected areas. A unique programme of recruiting tribal youth in the age group of 18 to 25 in the Naxalite affected districts as trainee Special Police Officers (SPOs) has been initiated and the response to this Scheme has been extremely positive, he informed. He also outlined several steps taken by the State Government to activate coastal security including operationalization of all the 5 Coastal Police Stations sanctioned for the State. He requested sanction of a few more Coastal Police Stations to cover the entire coastline of the State and for training of the State Police by the Coast Guard.
Reiterating the commitment of the State Government to strengthen the internal security system, Chief Minister observed that a holistic approach is required to meet the challenge of Left Wing Extremism and his Government has taken a number of steps with regard to the development of the affected districts. Since displacement of families on account of development projects has been a burning issue, a liberal rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) policy has been put in place. He emphasized that the land rights of the disadvantaged groups, particularly the tribal land rights have been adequately protected through legislation and several policy initiatives which include a ban on land transfer to non-tribals. About 1.2 lakh land titles have been distributed to the traditional forest dwellers covering an area of more than 1.80 lakh acres, he informed. Orissa is now giving utmost priority to grievance redressal of the common man and these measures have started yielding positive results.
In order to sustain the efforts of the State Government in their battle against Left Wing Extremism, and to build a more robust internal security system, Chief Minister demanded the deployment of another five Battalions of Central Paramilitary Forces in the northern districts of Orissa, which share the borders with West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh. This should be in addition to the five Batallions of BSF assigned to Southern Orissa recently. As connectivity is of prime importance for tackling extremism, he requested additional outlay of Rs. 300 crore for Vijayawada-Ranchi Road as it is passing through the Maoist affected districts of three States. He advocated for concrete roads in the tribal villages of Malkangiri and Koraput districts under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) and underlined the need for relaxation in the norms of PMGSY to cover villages having population of 100 and above since the affected areas are sparsely populated.
CM stated that the State Government has taken several steps to construct hostels in tribal areas and suggested that Centre should build more Ekalavya Model Schools and Hostels covering every Gram Panchayat in the affected areas in order to wean away the tribal youth from the Naxal ideology.
The battle against anti-national elements should be fought on all fronts, with firmness as well as sympathy for the public cause and we all must join together rising above all other considerations, Chief Minister emphasized.
CM highlighted various measures taken by the State Government to deal with the situation by drawing upon the State's own resources as well as from Central Schemes such as Modernization of Police Forces, Security Related Expenditure and Special Infrastructure Schemes.
He stated that the State's Budget allotment for the police has doubled over the last couple of years. To augment capacity of the State Police force, five Special Security Battalions have been raised and a new Basic Constabulary Training Academy has been sanctioned, he informed. Further, more than 100 new Police Stations have been set up in the last couple of years and the existing ones have been strengthened and equipped with modern arms and communication equipment.
He stated that the State Government has completed raising of the Special Operation Group, a dedicated anti-Naxalite force of about 2000 in the last two years and it is now carrying out regular operations in the affected areas. A unique programme of recruiting tribal youth in the age group of 18 to 25 in the Naxalite affected districts as trainee Special Police Officers (SPOs) has been initiated and the response to this Scheme has been extremely positive, he informed. He also outlined several steps taken by the State Government to activate coastal security including operationalization of all the 5 Coastal Police Stations sanctioned for the State. He requested sanction of a few more Coastal Police Stations to cover the entire coastline of the State and for training of the State Police by the Coast Guard.
Reiterating the commitment of the State Government to strengthen the internal security system, Chief Minister observed that a holistic approach is required to meet the challenge of Left Wing Extremism and his Government has taken a number of steps with regard to the development of the affected districts. Since displacement of families on account of development projects has been a burning issue, a liberal rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) policy has been put in place. He emphasized that the land rights of the disadvantaged groups, particularly the tribal land rights have been adequately protected through legislation and several policy initiatives which include a ban on land transfer to non-tribals. About 1.2 lakh land titles have been distributed to the traditional forest dwellers covering an area of more than 1.80 lakh acres, he informed. Orissa is now giving utmost priority to grievance redressal of the common man and these measures have started yielding positive results.
In order to sustain the efforts of the State Government in their battle against Left Wing Extremism, and to build a more robust internal security system, Chief Minister demanded the deployment of another five Battalions of Central Paramilitary Forces in the northern districts of Orissa, which share the borders with West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh. This should be in addition to the five Batallions of BSF assigned to Southern Orissa recently. As connectivity is of prime importance for tackling extremism, he requested additional outlay of Rs. 300 crore for Vijayawada-Ranchi Road as it is passing through the Maoist affected districts of three States. He advocated for concrete roads in the tribal villages of Malkangiri and Koraput districts under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) and underlined the need for relaxation in the norms of PMGSY to cover villages having population of 100 and above since the affected areas are sparsely populated.
CM stated that the State Government has taken several steps to construct hostels in tribal areas and suggested that Centre should build more Ekalavya Model Schools and Hostels covering every Gram Panchayat in the affected areas in order to wean away the tribal youth from the Naxal ideology.
The battle against anti-national elements should be fought on all fronts, with firmness as well as sympathy for the public cause and we all must join together rising above all other considerations, Chief Minister emphasized.
Joined rebels to get back my land: Arrested Maoist
Nishant Sinha, TNN, 7 February 2010, 07:17am IST
AURANGABAD: The two women Maoists, Shanti Devi and Mobin Khatoon, alias Sushma Devi, who were arrested from Ambabar village under Madanpur block
in Aurangabad district on Friday, told a section of the media after their arrest that they were lured by the rebels to join the organisation for a paltry sum, some food and clothes.
The revelation has come as a big jolt to the Maoists' claim of mass support to their ideology in their ongoing offensive against the government establishment.
Both the arrested women belong to Gaya district. While Shanti belongs to Pachrukhia village under Dumaria police station of Gaya, Mobin Khatoon is a native of Chakerbandha village of the same district.
Mobin said she joined the banned outfit out of compulsion after her brother took away her land. The rebels, she claimed, had promised to get her land back if she joined them. However, the rebels did not keep their word.
Mobin said during her four-year stint, the rebels paid her Rs 600 once in six months, some clothes and food. Her work, like most other women members of the group, was to visit different villages and mobilise support, particularly among womenfolk. She revealed that more than 400 women Maoists are now active in Aurangabad.
Repenting her association with the Maoists, Mobin said: "Now onwards, I dissociate myself from the outfit since it has not been able to redress poor people's grievances."
Meanwhile, Aurangabad SP Nishant Kumar Tiwary termed the arrests as a major achievement of the district police. He said raids are being conducted to arrest other Maoists who managed to flee the village.
AURANGABAD: The two women Maoists, Shanti Devi and Mobin Khatoon, alias Sushma Devi, who were arrested from Ambabar village under Madanpur block
in Aurangabad district on Friday, told a section of the media after their arrest that they were lured by the rebels to join the organisation for a paltry sum, some food and clothes.
The revelation has come as a big jolt to the Maoists' claim of mass support to their ideology in their ongoing offensive against the government establishment.
Both the arrested women belong to Gaya district. While Shanti belongs to Pachrukhia village under Dumaria police station of Gaya, Mobin Khatoon is a native of Chakerbandha village of the same district.
Mobin said she joined the banned outfit out of compulsion after her brother took away her land. The rebels, she claimed, had promised to get her land back if she joined them. However, the rebels did not keep their word.
Mobin said during her four-year stint, the rebels paid her Rs 600 once in six months, some clothes and food. Her work, like most other women members of the group, was to visit different villages and mobilise support, particularly among womenfolk. She revealed that more than 400 women Maoists are now active in Aurangabad.
Repenting her association with the Maoists, Mobin said: "Now onwards, I dissociate myself from the outfit since it has not been able to redress poor people's grievances."
Meanwhile, Aurangabad SP Nishant Kumar Tiwary termed the arrests as a major achievement of the district police. He said raids are being conducted to arrest other Maoists who managed to flee the village.
Dark forces in Pakistan will not succeed: Chidambaram (Lead)
Published on : Sunday 07 Feb 2010 14:40 - by IANS
New Delhi, Feb 7 : Cautioning that infiltration levels were on the rise in Jammu and Kashmir since the beginning of the year, Home Minister P. Chidambaram Sunday stressed that “dark forces" in Pakistan "will not succeed in their designs” to create turmoil in the state.
“Since the beginning of this year, there has been an increase in the number of attempts to infiltrate militants into India and in the number of encounters on our side of the border. So far, 16 militants have been killed and 16 more arrested,” said Chidambaram while addressing chief ministers at the internal security conclave.
Pointing specifically to the anti-India jehadi rally held on Thursday in Pakistan-administered Kashmir by the Jama'at-ud-Dawaah (JuD), a banned frontal organisation of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit, to express 'solidarity with Kashmir', Chidambaram said these groups were “implacably opposed to India”.
“It is clear that these groups are implacably opposed to India; their weapons are mayhem and violence; and their goal is forcible annexation of Kashmir. Let me make it clear: these dark forces will not succeed in their designs. We will defeat them whenever and wherever we confront them,” said the home minister.
Even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stressed at the conclave that hostile groups operating from across the border were trying to perpetrate terrorist acts in India.
“The state of Jammu and Kashmir bears the brunt of the acts of these groups,” said Manmohan Singh.
Referring to Maoist violence, Chidambaram, echoing the words of the prime minister, said it remained a grave threat and was reflected in the rise in fatalities.
“In consultation with chief ministers of Naxal (Maoist) affected states, we decided to boldly confront the challenge thrown by the Communist Party of India-Maoist. Consequently, there was a rise in the number of deaths in 2009 amongst civilians (591), security forces (317) and militants (217). As the security forces move forward to reclaim areas that are now dominated by the Naxalites, it is possible that this trend will continue in 2010 too,” said Chidambaram.
“However, I am confident that the state governments concerned will gradually gain the upper hand and re-establish the authority of the civil administration.”
Chidambaram pointed out there had been no significant terrorist attack in the last 14 months, especially after the successful setting up of the Multi-Agency Centre (MAC), which analyses intelligence in real time, but said there was no room for complacency.
“It is also a matter of satisfaction that there has been no significant communal incident during this period. That, I hasten to add, does not mean that there has been no violence or that we are not vulnerable to terrorist attacks; or that there are no triggers for communal disturbances,” he said.
“We must remain vigilant. We must continue the work on enhancing capacity. And we must reform our institutions and systems of governance in order to pre-empt terrorist threats and prevent communal discord.”
Copyright Indo Asian News
New Delhi, Feb 7 : Cautioning that infiltration levels were on the rise in Jammu and Kashmir since the beginning of the year, Home Minister P. Chidambaram Sunday stressed that “dark forces" in Pakistan "will not succeed in their designs” to create turmoil in the state.
“Since the beginning of this year, there has been an increase in the number of attempts to infiltrate militants into India and in the number of encounters on our side of the border. So far, 16 militants have been killed and 16 more arrested,” said Chidambaram while addressing chief ministers at the internal security conclave.
Pointing specifically to the anti-India jehadi rally held on Thursday in Pakistan-administered Kashmir by the Jama'at-ud-Dawaah (JuD), a banned frontal organisation of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit, to express 'solidarity with Kashmir', Chidambaram said these groups were “implacably opposed to India”.
“It is clear that these groups are implacably opposed to India; their weapons are mayhem and violence; and their goal is forcible annexation of Kashmir. Let me make it clear: these dark forces will not succeed in their designs. We will defeat them whenever and wherever we confront them,” said the home minister.
Even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stressed at the conclave that hostile groups operating from across the border were trying to perpetrate terrorist acts in India.
“The state of Jammu and Kashmir bears the brunt of the acts of these groups,” said Manmohan Singh.
Referring to Maoist violence, Chidambaram, echoing the words of the prime minister, said it remained a grave threat and was reflected in the rise in fatalities.
“In consultation with chief ministers of Naxal (Maoist) affected states, we decided to boldly confront the challenge thrown by the Communist Party of India-Maoist. Consequently, there was a rise in the number of deaths in 2009 amongst civilians (591), security forces (317) and militants (217). As the security forces move forward to reclaim areas that are now dominated by the Naxalites, it is possible that this trend will continue in 2010 too,” said Chidambaram.
“However, I am confident that the state governments concerned will gradually gain the upper hand and re-establish the authority of the civil administration.”
Chidambaram pointed out there had been no significant terrorist attack in the last 14 months, especially after the successful setting up of the Multi-Agency Centre (MAC), which analyses intelligence in real time, but said there was no room for complacency.
“It is also a matter of satisfaction that there has been no significant communal incident during this period. That, I hasten to add, does not mean that there has been no violence or that we are not vulnerable to terrorist attacks; or that there are no triggers for communal disturbances,” he said.
“We must remain vigilant. We must continue the work on enhancing capacity. And we must reform our institutions and systems of governance in order to pre-empt terrorist threats and prevent communal discord.”
Copyright Indo Asian News
Naxalite killed in turf war in Jharkhand
Ranchi: A Naxalite was killed today as rival extremist outfits exchanged gunfire near Burmu in Ranchi district.
The activists of Tritiya Prastuti Committee and Jan Sangharsh Mukti Morcha traded fire for about half-an-hour in the forests of Burmu in which one Naxalite was killed, DGP control room sources said.
After getting information, the security forces rushed to the spot and recovered the body. It was not yet known which group the dead Naxalite belonged to, the sources said.
Empty shells of SLR bullets were found from the spot.
At least six Naxal outfits operate in Jharkhand and engage in turf war, the police said.
The activists of Tritiya Prastuti Committee and Jan Sangharsh Mukti Morcha traded fire for about half-an-hour in the forests of Burmu in which one Naxalite was killed, DGP control room sources said.
After getting information, the security forces rushed to the spot and recovered the body. It was not yet known which group the dead Naxalite belonged to, the sources said.
Empty shells of SLR bullets were found from the spot.
At least six Naxal outfits operate in Jharkhand and engage in turf war, the police said.
Anti-Naxal response should be calibrated: PM
New Delhi, Feb 7 (PTI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said that the response to the left-wing extremism must be "calibrated" to avoid alienation of people, especially those in tribal areas.
The Prime Minister, who was speaking at the Chief Ministers' Conference on Internal Security here, said the anti-Naxal operations should go hand-in-hand with social and economic development.
"Our response to left?wing extremism must be calibrated to avoid alienating our people, especially those in tribal areas," he said.
"It must also go hand-in-hand with social and economic development of areas affected by left?wing extremism, bringing them into the mainstream of national progress," Singh said.
The Prime Minister, who reaffirmed his earlier stand that Naxalism is the greatest threat to internal security, said, "Tribal communities should get full benefit of our schemes and programmes. This is only possible by improving service delivery in tribal-dominated areas.
The Prime Minister, who was speaking at the Chief Ministers' Conference on Internal Security here, said the anti-Naxal operations should go hand-in-hand with social and economic development.
"Our response to left?wing extremism must be calibrated to avoid alienating our people, especially those in tribal areas," he said.
"It must also go hand-in-hand with social and economic development of areas affected by left?wing extremism, bringing them into the mainstream of national progress," Singh said.
The Prime Minister, who reaffirmed his earlier stand that Naxalism is the greatest threat to internal security, said, "Tribal communities should get full benefit of our schemes and programmes. This is only possible by improving service delivery in tribal-dominated areas.
Karnataka mulling surrender & rehab package for naxals: CM
PTI Sunday, February 7, 2010 16:18 IST
Bangalore: Karnataka government is actively considering offering a surrender and rehabilitation package to naxalites, chief minister BS Yeddyurappa said today.
Addressing the chief ministers' conference on internal security in New Delhi, he said due to the government's concerted and determined efforts, the naxal menace has been kept very much under control in Karnataka.
"Though there were a few incidents of threats and an incident of attack on police by naxals, for the first time in three years no policeman or civilian was killed by naxals", he said in his speech, copy of which was made available here.
Yeddyurappa also said Government was actively considering a proposal to raise a State Industrial Security Force.
The chief minister offered to the Centre appropriate land to set up a national-level police IT research and development centre to use technology more effectively at the cutting edge level in policing for better service delivery.
Yeddyurappa urged the Centre to depute officers to help the state in setting up a full-fledged commando training centre in Karnataka for training and build up capability to tackle the twin threats of naxalism and terrorism.
"In the last few years, it is seen that the enemy forces are concentrating on cities like Bangalore which reflect the growth centres of the country", he said.
Stating that his government has set up a state security commission, Yeddyurappa said the Karnataka high court has been requested to nominate a judge on it.
The chief minister suggested that the government of India scheme for modernisation of police force, which came to an end last year, be continued for another five years with enhanced funds and with identification of more focused areas.
"Training could be one such area", he said.
Bangalore: Karnataka government is actively considering offering a surrender and rehabilitation package to naxalites, chief minister BS Yeddyurappa said today.
Addressing the chief ministers' conference on internal security in New Delhi, he said due to the government's concerted and determined efforts, the naxal menace has been kept very much under control in Karnataka.
"Though there were a few incidents of threats and an incident of attack on police by naxals, for the first time in three years no policeman or civilian was killed by naxals", he said in his speech, copy of which was made available here.
Yeddyurappa also said Government was actively considering a proposal to raise a State Industrial Security Force.
The chief minister offered to the Centre appropriate land to set up a national-level police IT research and development centre to use technology more effectively at the cutting edge level in policing for better service delivery.
Yeddyurappa urged the Centre to depute officers to help the state in setting up a full-fledged commando training centre in Karnataka for training and build up capability to tackle the twin threats of naxalism and terrorism.
"In the last few years, it is seen that the enemy forces are concentrating on cities like Bangalore which reflect the growth centres of the country", he said.
Stating that his government has set up a state security commission, Yeddyurappa said the Karnataka high court has been requested to nominate a judge on it.
The chief minister suggested that the government of India scheme for modernisation of police force, which came to an end last year, be continued for another five years with enhanced funds and with identification of more focused areas.
"Training could be one such area", he said.
Home Minister’s address : Chief Ministers Conference on Internal Security
The Chief Ministers Conference on Internal Security got underway here this morning. The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh inaugurated the Conference. In his speech, the Prime Minister said that there will be no let up in our commitment and efforts towards security. He called for an effective coordination between the Centre and the States to face the challenge. He further said that our success also depends in large measure on the response of the State Governments. The Prime Minister urged the Chief Ministers to create Special Intervention Units in their States to enhance the speed and decisiveness to quicken the response teams. Observing that about 20 per cent of the total sanctioned strength of police personnel in the State is lying vacant, he called upon the Chief Ministers to take expeditious action to fill these vacant posts. Recalling the measures like setting up of four Regional Hubs of NSG and Multi-Agency Centre for strengthened security, Dr. Manmohan Singh urged the Chief Ministers to benefit from these arrangements. (Full text of Prime Minster’s speech is available on PIB website i.e. www.pib.nic.in).
The Union Minister for Home Affairs Shri P.Chidambaram in his opening remarks. He gave an overview of the security situation in the country and the progress made on various security related aspects. Shri P.Chidambaram expressed the confidence that 2010 will witness further improvement in the situation in J&K and the North-Eastern States. He emphasized the need for police reforms to strengthen the internal security apparatus. Following is the text of the Home Minister’s address:
“ I welcome the Prime Minister and all of you to the third Conference of Chief Ministers on Internal Security. I am grateful to the Chief Ministers and other Heads of delegations and senior officers for their gracious presence. This is the third conference of its kind held in the space of 13 months. Never before have the Central Government and the State Governments worked so closely together – or interacted more frequently – on matters concerning internal security. In a way, we are responding to the demands and expectations of the people of the country. It is the right response. In fact, it is the only response that will be seen by the people to be right.
Let me begin with an overview of the security situation in the country. It is a matter of satisfaction that there has been no significant terrorist attack in the last 14 months. It is also a matter of satisfaction that there has been no significant communal incident during this period. That, I hasten to add, does not mean that there has been no violence; or that we are not vulnerable to terrorist attacks; or that there are no triggers for communal disturbances. We must remain vigilant. We must continue the work on enhancing capacity. And we must reform our institutions and systems of governance in order to pre-empt terrorist threats and prevent communal discord.
Last year, Jammu and Kashmir and the North Eastern States witnessed the lowest level of incidents and casualties in many years. In Jammu and Kashmir, there were 499 incidents: 78 civilians and 64 members of the security forces were killed and 239 terrorists/militants were neutralised. However, since the beginning of this year, there has been an increase in the number of attempts to infiltrate militants into India and in the number of encounters on our side of the border. So far, 16 militants have been killed and 16 more arrested. I draw your attention to a meeting held a few days ago – on February 4 – at Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir and attended by militant groups including Lashkar-e-Toiba and Hizbul Mujahideen. It is clear that these groups are implacably opposed to India; their weapons are mayhem and violence; and their goal is forcible annexation of Kashmir. Let me make it clear: these dark forces will not succeed in their designs. We will defeat them whenever and wherever we confront them.
In 2009, the North Eastern States witnessed 1297 incidents: 264 civilians and 42 members of the security forces were killed and 571 militants/insurgents were neutralised. Thanks to the cooperation extended by the Government of Bangladesh, many leaders of insurgent groups were forced to return to India and have either surrendered to or have been apprehended by our security forces. Our determined effort to curb insurgency and violence has had a salutary effect and many insurgent groups have laid down arms and come forward to hold talks with the State Government concerned and the Central Government.
I am confident that 2010 will witness further improvement in the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and in the North Eastern States.
Naxalism, however, remains a grave threat. You will recall that at the last Conference of Chief Ministers, I had announced that we would encourage State Governments to talk to the naxalites if they abjured violence. Our public offer was scoffed at and spurned by the CPI (Maoist). Hence, in consultation with the Chief Ministers of naxal affected States, we decided to boldly confront the challenge thrown by the CPI (Maoist). Consequently, there was a rise in the number of deaths in 2009 amongst civilians (591), security forces (317) and militants (217). As the security forces move forward to reclaim areas that are now dominated by the naxalites, it is possible that this trend will continue in 2010 too. However, I am confident that the State Governments concerned will gradually gain the upper hand and re-establish the authority of the civil administration. I would urge the State Governments to ensure that re-establishment of the civil administration is quickly followed by implementation of development and welfare schemes.
In order to prepare for this Conference we had circulated a questionnaire to the States. The questionnaire sought information under 15 heads. All 35 States/UTs have sent their responses, although there are some gaps in the information that I hope will be filled in due course. This is a development of great significance. For the first time, we have a baseline on the capacity of the States and the measures that are being taken to meet the challenges to internal security. I would appeal to the Chief Ministers to join us in such an exercise every year so that we may be able to measure the progress during the year over the baseline. This exercise would also help the Central Government in allocating resources to the States based on the twin criteria of need and achievement.
Ladies and Gentlemen: Allow me to take a few minutes to summarise the responses of the State Governments to the questionnaire. Manpower remains an acute problem. As on 1.1.2009 the total number of police personnel actually in place in all States/UTs was 14,70,837. It increased to 15,04,153 by 30.9.2009 and is projected to increase to 15,81,439 by 31.3.2010. Thus, about 1,10,000 police personnel have been or will be recruited in a period of 15 months that signals a positive response to the trauma of 26/11. However, the flipside is the humongous vacancies in the sanctioned posts. As on 1.1.2009 there were 1,53,428 vacancies. It is expected to decline to 1,38,559 on 31.3.2010. In addition, there is Uttar Pradesh where there is a peculiar situation. In December 2008, Uttar Pradesh had sanctioned 2,04,021 new posts and I am informed that the process of recruitment is underway. The vacancy position reflects a very unsatisfactory state of affairs. There is no reason why States should not press the accelerator on recruitment and fill the vacancies. In July 2009, we had commended to the States a new, transparent, technology-driven procedure for recruitment. Only a few States have adopted or indicated willingness to adopt the new procedure.
I think the real problem behind tardy recruitment is the failure to provide adequate funds under the head ‘Police’. The total budgetary support by all States/UTs for Police in 2008-09 RE was Rs.36,434 crore and this increased to Rs.44,354 crore in 2009-10 BE, marking an increase of 21.7 per cent. About 75-80 per cent of this amount goes to pay salaries, leaving very little for training, weapons and modernisation. As a proportion of the total budgeted expenditure of all States/UTs in 2009-10, the allocation to police is a meagre 4.3 per cent. In my view, the subject ‘Police’ does not receive the kind of budgetary support that is required to make the police force in the State a strong and effective instrument of security. I would urge Chief Ministers to recognise the priority that must be accorded to security and ensure that in the State Budget for 2010-11 larger allocations are made for ‘Police’.
The visible symbol of security in a State is the police station. Between 1.1.2009 and 30.9.2009 only 139 rural police stations and 34 urban police stations were added. A further 282 rural police stations and 44 urban police stations are expected to be added by 31.3.2010. While this is slow progress, the average number of personnel sanctioned for a police station is unsatisfactory. The sanctioned average for all States/UTs is about 52 per police station. In rural police stations, the number varies from 12 in Madhya Pradesh and 13 in Orissa to 50 in Maharashtra, 51 in Gujarat, 54 in Punjab and 89 in Uttar Pradesh. However, this is only the sanctioned average. Adjusted for the number of vacancies, the actual strength is much lower. The picture is not very different in urban police stations and the number varies from 21 in Orissa and 27 in Jharkhand to 117 in Maharashtra and 180 in Delhi.
It is universally acknowledged that in matters concerning security there is no substitute for ‘putting more men and women on the street’. That is why I urge you to quicken the pace of recruitment to the police force in your State. But even as you add more personnel, some of them must be dedicated to specialised functions such as Intelligence, Anti Terrorist Unit, Quick Response Teams, Industrial Security Force and Coastal Security. Based on the responses to the questionnaire, I find thatonly 9 States/UTs have a separate cadre for intelligence and only 16 States/UTs have accepted the scheme suggested by the Intelligence Bureau to restructure the State Special Branch. While nearly all States have set up QRTs, 6 States have not yet set up an Anti-Terrorist Unit.
Police reforms in the States also tell a story of slow progress. Not all States have complied with the directions of the Supreme Court in Prakash Singh and others vs. Union of India. 22 States have not yet enacted a new Police Act; 19 States have not yet set up a Police Complaints Authority; and 24 States have not yet established a State Security Commission. Besides, most States have not yet segregated the ‘law and order’ and ‘investigation’ functions.
Hon’ble Chief Ministers: These matters deserve your urgent attention.
` Ladies and Gentlemen: you will recall that at the conclusion of the last Conference in August, 2009 I had listed a number of items which you had desired should be examined and acted upon. I am happy to report the action taken by the Central Government in that behalf.
The Multi Agency Centre has already established connectivity with the S-MAC in the State capitals and the Special Branch of the State. By 30.4.2010, new hardware will be installed in the S-MACs and the Special Branch Control Rooms and seamless, secure, round-the-clock connectivity will be established.
We propose to continue the Modernisation of Police Force Scheme. In-principle approval has been given for 2010-11 and, after receiving the report of the study commissioned by the BPR&D, we propose to formulate the second phase of the scheme to begin in the year 2011-12.
Megacity policing is high on the agenda. We are examining a scheme that will cover the 7 metropolitan cities and some other cities. A DPR for the 7 metropolitan cities at an estimated cost of Rs.600 crore is under preparation.
We have already circulated a revised surrender-cum-rehabilitation scheme for militants in the North Eastern States as well as in the naxal-affected States. Stipend for surrendered cadres has been enhanced.
Rs.10.50 crore has been released to establish 7 counter insurgency and anti-terrorism schools in 5States. Of these, the school in Orissa has started a 13-week training course for the first batch. The school in Bihar will start the training from 1.3.2010. The other schools are likely to do so by 31.3.2010. Besides, in 2009, BPR&D conducted 48 courses for 3100 State officers and the Army trained 5900 State personnel. The Intelligence Bureau trained 936 officers of the States. Apart from the IB Central Training School, IB has set up two Regional Training Centres at Kolkata and Tiruvananthapuram. A Central Academy for Police Training will come up in Bhopal and is expected to be functional in 2011-12.
We are strengthening security along the India-Nepal border. SSB is raising 32 new battalions and work on the ICP at Raxaul will begin in April, 2010.
Under the Coastal Security scheme, 64 out of 73 coastal police stations that were sanctioned are operational. Construction of new buildings is lagging behind in some States. 78 out of 204 interceptor boats have been delivered so far and the remaining will be delivered by October 2010. Phase II of the Coastal Security scheme has been finalised. We propose to fund 131 police stations and 180 boats in the second phase.
We have, to the extent possible, accommodated your requests for procurement of weapons in the on-going procurement of CPMFs. These include 1,119 pistols, 400 assault rifles, 7,250 AK 47 rifles and 277 sniper rifles. We shall continue to accommodate your requests in future procurements too.
Ladies and Gentlemen, you would have noticed that the content of my opening statement has changed from goal-setting in January, 2009 to policy statements and division of responsibilities in August, 2009 to stock-taking and presenting a progress report today. Strengthening the security system requires more than a vision. It requires more than a plan. It requires hard work. Actually, it requires sustained hard work and eternal vigilance. The Constitution has assigned to the States the legislative and executive powers in respect of ‘public order’ and ‘police’. The same Constitution has assigned to the Central Government the duty ‘to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance’. We are, therefore, bound by the Constitution to work together. On behalf of the Government of India, I offer to work with you in a spirit of partnership, and I am sure you will reciprocate my offer. I look forward to listening to your views on the vital subject of internal security.
I welcome you once again to this Conference and I shall now request the Hon’ble Prime Minister to inaugurate the Conference. “
Saturday, February 06, 2010
PM ADDRESSES CHIEF MINSTERS’ CONFERENCE ON INTERNAL SECURITY
11:30 IST
The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, inaugurated the Chief Ministers’ Conference on Internal Security in New Delhi today. In his address, the Prime Minister called for effective coordination between the Centre and the States to face the challenges of Internal Security. Following is the text of the Prime Minister’s address on the occasion:
“We have gathered here today to discuss issues relating to our internal security, an area that require utmost vigil, sustained and coordinated attention of both the Central and the State governments. We must periodically together review the systems that are in place for ensuring the safety and security of our country and our citizens, assess the threats that we face and take appropriate remedial action to deal with those threats. It is in this spirit that this Conference is being held. I compliment the Home Minister and his team for organizing it and for the good work that they have done in the last one year. I welcome and greet each one of you and I sincerely hope that the deliberations of this Conference will contribute substantively to the strengthening of our internal security.
All of you are aware of the major threats to our security. Hostile groups and elements operate from across the border to perpetrate terrorist acts in our country. The State of Jammu & Kashmir bears the brunt of the acts of these groups. There is insurgency and violence in the North-East. Many States are affected by Left–Wing extremism, which I have in the past referred to as the greatest threat to our internal security. There are also those trying to divide our society on communal and regional lines. Each one of these threats requires a strong effort, determination, hard work and continuous vigilance to tackle. These threats to our society, to our polity and our country constitute a challenge that we must and we shall meet effectively at all costs.
When we met last time in August 2009, I had mentioned the steps we had taken to improve our internal security environment between January and August. These included the setting up of four regional hubs of the National Security Guard at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad and the setting up of the National Investigation Agency. Since then we have made further progress. The Multi Agency Centre (MAC) in the Intelligence Bureau now shares intelligence with other agencies, including those of the State Governments and Union Territories on a continuous and real time basis. Reciprocally, the other agencies are also obliged to share intelligence with the Multi Agency Centre. The Centre operates on a 24 hour basis and I expect that this arrangement for sharing and exchange of information and intelligence will greatly help us not only in apprehending those responsible for acts that vitiate our security environment but also in preventing such acts. I also understand that the Ministry of Home Affairs has initiated action to set up dedicated and secure online connectivity for exchange of real time intelligence and security related information between the Centre and the States. I would urge all Hon’ble Chief Ministers to benefit from these facilities and arrangements.
We have also made progress in some other areas. To enable quick movement of anti-terrorist forces, the Director General of the National Security Guard and certain other designated officers are now empowered to requisition aircraft. The Central Industrial Security Force Act has been amended so that the Force can provide security to establishments and undertakings in the joint and private sectors. The National Investigation Agency has started its work with cases for investigation and prosecution having been assigned to it. It is my expectation that the States would make the fullest possible use of this agency so that our fight against terrorism can be a forceful and united effort.
The terrorist strikes in Mumbai in November 2008 had made us painfully aware of the need to strengthen our coastal security. The National Committee on Coastal security under the chairmanship of the Cabinet Secretary has been constituted to adopt an integrated approach to this very vital issue. The Committee has taken action to increase the level of patrolling and surveillance along the Indian coastline and bring about greater coordination between the various agencies that can contribute to security along our coasts. The issue of multi-purpose identity cards with biometric features to residents in coastal areas is expected to be completed by September 2010. The process of registration of boats and vessels has gathered momentum. Standard operating procedures have been finalized and communicated to the State Government. These and other steps being taken should help substantially in making our coastline safer and secure.
While we have made progress on different fronts, we are also aware that we have a lot more to achieve. I would like to take this opportunity to assure all of you present here that there will be no let up in our commitment and in our efforts. However, our success also depends in large measure on the response of the State Governments. While speaking to Chief Secretaries of States a few days back I had said that many issues in today’s world require a response that is coordinated not only between the affected States but also between the Centre and the States. Internal security is certainly one such issue, and for that matter a critical issue which affects the pace of our growth and development.
Apart from coordinating efforts, there are certain specific steps which the States could take. I would like to take this opportunity to urge the Chief Ministers to create Special Intervention Units in their States to enhance the speed and decisiveness of the Quick Response Teams. The States may also like to develop specialized commando forces which could be deployed to act as a deterrent to terrorist acts. I would urge Chief Ministers to make full use of the scheme formulated by the Central Government to assist the Special Branches of States in strengthening their intelligence capabilities.
A very basic pre-requisite of any internal security system is an adequate number of policemen who are well trained. The problems of inadequate number of policemen and deficiency in training of the police personnel have been underlined time and again. Unfortunately there has not been adequate progress in these areas. The figures collected by the Ministry of Home Affairs show that at the end of September 2009, about three lakh ninety four thousand of the sanctioned posts in the State and Union Territory police forces were lying vacant. This constitutes a large proportion – about 20 percent - of the total sanctioned strength. I would urge State Chief Ministers to take expeditious action to fill these vacant posts. There is also a need to ensure good infrastructure for our police forces to be effective and efficient. At present for all States as a whole, around 80 percent of the police budget is used for salaries, allowances and pensions. The States should increase the proportion of the budget earmarked for police infrastructure and police training. I hope to see greater efforts from States and enhanced allocations in State budgets for recruitment and training of police personnel and for improving the infrastructural facilities available to our police forces. We should also think of special incentives for policemen, and indeed other government officials, posted in difficult areas.
During the course of this Conference, the internal security issues that we face will be discussed in detail. I will only touch upon a few of them. As far as Jammu & Kashmir is concerned, there has been a marked decline in the number of terrorist incidents from 2008 to 2009. But, infiltration levels have shown an increase. Recently there have been some incidents which are disturbing. In the North-East also, the number of incidents has gone down in 2009 as compared to 2008. The number of incidents related to Left-Wing extremism has however increased in the same period, as has the number of civilians and security personnel killed in these incidents. This is worrisome. The Left–Wing extremists continue to target vital installations and kill innocent civilians in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Orissa and West Bengal. The Centre and the States have to find ways and means of jointly fighting this menace. As I have said earlier, our response to Left–Wing extremism must be calibrated to avoid alienating our people, especially those in the tribal areas. It must also go hand in hand with social and economic development of areas affected by Left–Wing extremism, bringing them into the mainstream of national progress. Tribal communities in particular, should get full benefit of our development schemes and development programmes. This is only possible by improving service delivery in tribal dominated areas.
I would also like to make a mention of the menace of counterfeit currency notes. There are indications that Fake Indian Currency Notes are being printed and smuggled into India from outside our country. There is obviously a need for a coordinated approach by the Central and State agencies to tackle this menace; which has serious implications for our economy. In some instances of recovery of fake currency, especially by banks, there has been a reluctance to register the First Information Report. This has to be avoided and all such cases must be thoroughly investigated. The States could also designate a nodal agency to investigate cases of seizure or recovery of Fake Currency Notes and set up a state level committee for continuous vigilance in the matter, as has been suggested by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
We have a hard task ahead but one that can be and must be achieved with determination and coordinated action. As we deliberate upon the serious issues that constitute the agenda of this Conference, it will be in the spirit of strengthening each others’ hands. We will only succeed if we are united as a nation in addressing the concerns related to our internal security. In conclusion, I wish you all the very best in your endeavours and hope that this conference will lead to a better understanding of internal security issues and will also result in more effective responses to the threats we face as a nation.”
The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, inaugurated the Chief Ministers’ Conference on Internal Security in New Delhi today. In his address, the Prime Minister called for effective coordination between the Centre and the States to face the challenges of Internal Security. Following is the text of the Prime Minister’s address on the occasion:
“We have gathered here today to discuss issues relating to our internal security, an area that require utmost vigil, sustained and coordinated attention of both the Central and the State governments. We must periodically together review the systems that are in place for ensuring the safety and security of our country and our citizens, assess the threats that we face and take appropriate remedial action to deal with those threats. It is in this spirit that this Conference is being held. I compliment the Home Minister and his team for organizing it and for the good work that they have done in the last one year. I welcome and greet each one of you and I sincerely hope that the deliberations of this Conference will contribute substantively to the strengthening of our internal security.
All of you are aware of the major threats to our security. Hostile groups and elements operate from across the border to perpetrate terrorist acts in our country. The State of Jammu & Kashmir bears the brunt of the acts of these groups. There is insurgency and violence in the North-East. Many States are affected by Left–Wing extremism, which I have in the past referred to as the greatest threat to our internal security. There are also those trying to divide our society on communal and regional lines. Each one of these threats requires a strong effort, determination, hard work and continuous vigilance to tackle. These threats to our society, to our polity and our country constitute a challenge that we must and we shall meet effectively at all costs.
When we met last time in August 2009, I had mentioned the steps we had taken to improve our internal security environment between January and August. These included the setting up of four regional hubs of the National Security Guard at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad and the setting up of the National Investigation Agency. Since then we have made further progress. The Multi Agency Centre (MAC) in the Intelligence Bureau now shares intelligence with other agencies, including those of the State Governments and Union Territories on a continuous and real time basis. Reciprocally, the other agencies are also obliged to share intelligence with the Multi Agency Centre. The Centre operates on a 24 hour basis and I expect that this arrangement for sharing and exchange of information and intelligence will greatly help us not only in apprehending those responsible for acts that vitiate our security environment but also in preventing such acts. I also understand that the Ministry of Home Affairs has initiated action to set up dedicated and secure online connectivity for exchange of real time intelligence and security related information between the Centre and the States. I would urge all Hon’ble Chief Ministers to benefit from these facilities and arrangements.
We have also made progress in some other areas. To enable quick movement of anti-terrorist forces, the Director General of the National Security Guard and certain other designated officers are now empowered to requisition aircraft. The Central Industrial Security Force Act has been amended so that the Force can provide security to establishments and undertakings in the joint and private sectors. The National Investigation Agency has started its work with cases for investigation and prosecution having been assigned to it. It is my expectation that the States would make the fullest possible use of this agency so that our fight against terrorism can be a forceful and united effort.
The terrorist strikes in Mumbai in November 2008 had made us painfully aware of the need to strengthen our coastal security. The National Committee on Coastal security under the chairmanship of the Cabinet Secretary has been constituted to adopt an integrated approach to this very vital issue. The Committee has taken action to increase the level of patrolling and surveillance along the Indian coastline and bring about greater coordination between the various agencies that can contribute to security along our coasts. The issue of multi-purpose identity cards with biometric features to residents in coastal areas is expected to be completed by September 2010. The process of registration of boats and vessels has gathered momentum. Standard operating procedures have been finalized and communicated to the State Government. These and other steps being taken should help substantially in making our coastline safer and secure.
While we have made progress on different fronts, we are also aware that we have a lot more to achieve. I would like to take this opportunity to assure all of you present here that there will be no let up in our commitment and in our efforts. However, our success also depends in large measure on the response of the State Governments. While speaking to Chief Secretaries of States a few days back I had said that many issues in today’s world require a response that is coordinated not only between the affected States but also between the Centre and the States. Internal security is certainly one such issue, and for that matter a critical issue which affects the pace of our growth and development.
Apart from coordinating efforts, there are certain specific steps which the States could take. I would like to take this opportunity to urge the Chief Ministers to create Special Intervention Units in their States to enhance the speed and decisiveness of the Quick Response Teams. The States may also like to develop specialized commando forces which could be deployed to act as a deterrent to terrorist acts. I would urge Chief Ministers to make full use of the scheme formulated by the Central Government to assist the Special Branches of States in strengthening their intelligence capabilities.
A very basic pre-requisite of any internal security system is an adequate number of policemen who are well trained. The problems of inadequate number of policemen and deficiency in training of the police personnel have been underlined time and again. Unfortunately there has not been adequate progress in these areas. The figures collected by the Ministry of Home Affairs show that at the end of September 2009, about three lakh ninety four thousand of the sanctioned posts in the State and Union Territory police forces were lying vacant. This constitutes a large proportion – about 20 percent - of the total sanctioned strength. I would urge State Chief Ministers to take expeditious action to fill these vacant posts. There is also a need to ensure good infrastructure for our police forces to be effective and efficient. At present for all States as a whole, around 80 percent of the police budget is used for salaries, allowances and pensions. The States should increase the proportion of the budget earmarked for police infrastructure and police training. I hope to see greater efforts from States and enhanced allocations in State budgets for recruitment and training of police personnel and for improving the infrastructural facilities available to our police forces. We should also think of special incentives for policemen, and indeed other government officials, posted in difficult areas.
During the course of this Conference, the internal security issues that we face will be discussed in detail. I will only touch upon a few of them. As far as Jammu & Kashmir is concerned, there has been a marked decline in the number of terrorist incidents from 2008 to 2009. But, infiltration levels have shown an increase. Recently there have been some incidents which are disturbing. In the North-East also, the number of incidents has gone down in 2009 as compared to 2008. The number of incidents related to Left-Wing extremism has however increased in the same period, as has the number of civilians and security personnel killed in these incidents. This is worrisome. The Left–Wing extremists continue to target vital installations and kill innocent civilians in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Orissa and West Bengal. The Centre and the States have to find ways and means of jointly fighting this menace. As I have said earlier, our response to Left–Wing extremism must be calibrated to avoid alienating our people, especially those in the tribal areas. It must also go hand in hand with social and economic development of areas affected by Left–Wing extremism, bringing them into the mainstream of national progress. Tribal communities in particular, should get full benefit of our development schemes and development programmes. This is only possible by improving service delivery in tribal dominated areas.
I would also like to make a mention of the menace of counterfeit currency notes. There are indications that Fake Indian Currency Notes are being printed and smuggled into India from outside our country. There is obviously a need for a coordinated approach by the Central and State agencies to tackle this menace; which has serious implications for our economy. In some instances of recovery of fake currency, especially by banks, there has been a reluctance to register the First Information Report. This has to be avoided and all such cases must be thoroughly investigated. The States could also designate a nodal agency to investigate cases of seizure or recovery of Fake Currency Notes and set up a state level committee for continuous vigilance in the matter, as has been suggested by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
We have a hard task ahead but one that can be and must be achieved with determination and coordinated action. As we deliberate upon the serious issues that constitute the agenda of this Conference, it will be in the spirit of strengthening each others’ hands. We will only succeed if we are united as a nation in addressing the concerns related to our internal security. In conclusion, I wish you all the very best in your endeavours and hope that this conference will lead to a better understanding of internal security issues and will also result in more effective responses to the threats we face as a nation.”
Maoists blow up railway tracks; kill officials ahead of shutdown
Maoists attacks have been reported ahead of a 72-hour shutdown call given by them from Sunday across the four states of Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal. A railway official has been killed and a railway track has been blown up near Narganjo in Bihar.
Two other railway tracks on the Delhi-Howrah route have also been damaged affecting train services between Howrah and Delhi. There are also reports of a railway supervisor being killed on the Jharkhand-Orissa border. West Bengal has been put on a state of high alert after Maoists killed a CPM leader near Veerbhum.
Several trains have been cancelled and a few trains including the Ranchi Rajdhani Express have been diverted to avoid untoward incidents. All four states are on high alert ahead of the shutdown and extra vigilance is being maintained by police stations in the Naxal-affected districts.
Additional forces of Special Auxiliary Police, Bihar Military Police and central para-military forces have also been deployed. The shutdown has been called to protest against joint police operations in the four states. Union Home Minister P Chidambaram is to visit West Bengal on February 9 to assess the security situation in the state.
Two other railway tracks on the Delhi-Howrah route have also been damaged affecting train services between Howrah and Delhi. There are also reports of a railway supervisor being killed on the Jharkhand-Orissa border. West Bengal has been put on a state of high alert after Maoists killed a CPM leader near Veerbhum.
Several trains have been cancelled and a few trains including the Ranchi Rajdhani Express have been diverted to avoid untoward incidents. All four states are on high alert ahead of the shutdown and extra vigilance is being maintained by police stations in the Naxal-affected districts.
Additional forces of Special Auxiliary Police, Bihar Military Police and central para-military forces have also been deployed. The shutdown has been called to protest against joint police operations in the four states. Union Home Minister P Chidambaram is to visit West Bengal on February 9 to assess the security situation in the state.
Maoists regularly organise people's court
by Calcuttajourno February 06, 2010
Naxals or Maoists regularly organize people’s court in their strongholds in India in front of local people.They conduct ‘trial’ of ‘corrupted’ politicians.If they found ‘guilty’,they are thrashed for ‘corruption’.In these people’s courts(Jan Adalat), first the ‘accused’ person is summoned to the ‘court’,if he refuses to comply then he is killed by Maoists.In West Bengal,Maoists regularly tried leaders and workers of political parties in people’s court for corruptions like misappropriation of funds from government run welfare schemes or local bodies-if they held guilty,they(political leaders or party workers)are forced to sign a piece of paper,severing all links to the party.if they ‘ignore’ their ‘diktat’,they face brutal consequences.Maoists Communist Centre (MCC) had been holding people’s courts specially in caste ridden Central Bihar since early 1980s.MCC targeted feudal landlords for their exploitation of the lower caste(Harijan) people.MCC first summoned landlords to the peoples courts.If they refused to comply the order,they were then beheaded or faced ‘extreme punishment’ MCC called these people’s verdict and villagers carried out the punishments
Naxals or Maoists regularly organize people’s court in their strongholds in India in front of local people.They conduct ‘trial’ of ‘corrupted’ politicians.If they found ‘guilty’,they are thrashed for ‘corruption’.In these people’s courts(Jan Adalat), first the ‘accused’ person is summoned to the ‘court’,if he refuses to comply then he is killed by Maoists.In West Bengal,Maoists regularly tried leaders and workers of political parties in people’s court for corruptions like misappropriation of funds from government run welfare schemes or local bodies-if they held guilty,they(political leaders or party workers)are forced to sign a piece of paper,severing all links to the party.if they ‘ignore’ their ‘diktat’,they face brutal consequences.Maoists Communist Centre (MCC) had been holding people’s courts specially in caste ridden Central Bihar since early 1980s.MCC targeted feudal landlords for their exploitation of the lower caste(Harijan) people.MCC first summoned landlords to the peoples courts.If they refused to comply the order,they were then beheaded or faced ‘extreme punishment’ MCC called these people’s verdict and villagers carried out the punishments
Centre to boldly confront challenges thrown by Naxalites: HM
ANI
New Delhi Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Sunday said the Centre would boldly confront all challenges thrown at it by the Naxalites. Addressing an internal security meeting of all State Chief Ministers, which was convened by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, Chidambaram urged state governments to talk to Maoists groups
He further said that all the Naxal-affected areas would be better administered in the future. Talking about cross border terrorism, Chidambaram said: “We will defeat separatist forces in Jammu and Kashmir.” Further hinting at shortage of police officials in the country, Chidambaram said, “Around one lakh police personnel will be deployed in the next 15 months.”
Sunday’s meeting has been called by Dr Singh to discuss internal security and issues related to terrorism. Meanwhile, Maoists attacks have been reported ahead of a 72-hour shutdown call given by them across the four states of Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa.
New Delhi Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Sunday said the Centre would boldly confront all challenges thrown at it by the Naxalites. Addressing an internal security meeting of all State Chief Ministers, which was convened by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, Chidambaram urged state governments to talk to Maoists groups
He further said that all the Naxal-affected areas would be better administered in the future. Talking about cross border terrorism, Chidambaram said: “We will defeat separatist forces in Jammu and Kashmir.” Further hinting at shortage of police officials in the country, Chidambaram said, “Around one lakh police personnel will be deployed in the next 15 months.”
Sunday’s meeting has been called by Dr Singh to discuss internal security and issues related to terrorism. Meanwhile, Maoists attacks have been reported ahead of a 72-hour shutdown call given by them across the four states of Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa.
Naxalism biggest threat to internal security: Manmohan Singh
New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today described Naxalism and cross border terrorism as biggest threat to country's internal security.
United efforts are needed to fight terrorists, Maoists and communal forces that pose "major threats" to our internal security, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Sunday as he asked the state and central governments to face the challenge with firm determination.
"Utmost vigil, sustained and coordinated efforts of the central and state governments are needed. We must periodically review the systems that are in place and ensure the safety and security of our country and our citizens," Manmohan Singh said while inaugurating the internal security conclave for state chief ministers held here.
The prime minister listed terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, Maoist insurgency in tribal-dominated central India and communal forces as "major threats" to the country.
"All of you are aware of the major threats to our security. Hostile groups and elements operate from across the border to perpetrate terrorist acts in our country. The state of Jammu and Kashmir bears the brunt of the acts of these groups.
"There is insurgency and violence in the northeast. Many states are affected by the Leftwing extremism, which I have in the past referred to as the greatest threat to our security.
The prime minister noted that there are also people "who try to divide our society on communal and regional lines".
"Each one of these threats require a firm determination and continuous vigil to tackle them. These threats to our society and people constitute a challenge that we shall and must meet at all costs," he said.
Reacting on internal security, Singh said, "Centre and State governments should periodically review the security system."
He said that shortage of policemen is acute problem in fighting naxalism. He said that state governments should increase budget for police infrastructure reforms. He further said that more recruitment should be done to meet the required manpower.
Expressing disappointment over situation in J&K, the Prime Minister said that infiltration bid increased in the valley last year while the number of terror attacks declined in 2009.
On the other hand, Home Minister P Chidamabaram also pitched for police system reforms in the country to tackle the naxalism and terror.
He also urged states to recruit more policemen. He thanked Bangladesh for its approach in tackling insurgency in North-East
United efforts are needed to fight terrorists, Maoists and communal forces that pose "major threats" to our internal security, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Sunday as he asked the state and central governments to face the challenge with firm determination.
"Utmost vigil, sustained and coordinated efforts of the central and state governments are needed. We must periodically review the systems that are in place and ensure the safety and security of our country and our citizens," Manmohan Singh said while inaugurating the internal security conclave for state chief ministers held here.
The prime minister listed terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, Maoist insurgency in tribal-dominated central India and communal forces as "major threats" to the country.
"All of you are aware of the major threats to our security. Hostile groups and elements operate from across the border to perpetrate terrorist acts in our country. The state of Jammu and Kashmir bears the brunt of the acts of these groups.
"There is insurgency and violence in the northeast. Many states are affected by the Leftwing extremism, which I have in the past referred to as the greatest threat to our security.
The prime minister noted that there are also people "who try to divide our society on communal and regional lines".
"Each one of these threats require a firm determination and continuous vigil to tackle them. These threats to our society and people constitute a challenge that we shall and must meet at all costs," he said.
Reacting on internal security, Singh said, "Centre and State governments should periodically review the security system."
He said that shortage of policemen is acute problem in fighting naxalism. He said that state governments should increase budget for police infrastructure reforms. He further said that more recruitment should be done to meet the required manpower.
Expressing disappointment over situation in J&K, the Prime Minister said that infiltration bid increased in the valley last year while the number of terror attacks declined in 2009.
On the other hand, Home Minister P Chidamabaram also pitched for police system reforms in the country to tackle the naxalism and terror.
He also urged states to recruit more policemen. He thanked Bangladesh for its approach in tackling insurgency in North-East
Maoists blow up rail tracks in Bihar during 72-hour bandh
Press Trust Of India
Jamui (Bihar), February 07, 2010
First Published: 09:17 IST(7/2/2010)
Last Updated: 10:28 IST(7/2/2010)
Print
Maoists blew up railway tracks to enforce their 72-hour bandh near Rajla station on Jhaja-Jasidih section of East Central Railway in Bihar's Jamui district, officials said today.
"About 40 Maoist guerrillas blew up the UP and DOWN tracks late last night between Rajla and Narganjo railway halts near Kahba bridge, affecting the movement of several long-distance and local trains," Additional Director General of Police (Headquarters) U S Dutt told PTI in Patna.
A stretch of 2.5 feet of UP line and five feet DOWN line were damaged by the impact of the blast, railway sources said.
While jawans of GRP, RPF and local police have reached the site, Divisional Railway Manager of Asansol, D K Gaien have also rushed to the spot in a special van to oversee the repair work, official sources said.
Maoists have called the bandh in Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh today to protest proposed "Operation Green Hunt" to be launched by Centre against the Maoists.
Jamui (Bihar), February 07, 2010
First Published: 09:17 IST(7/2/2010)
Last Updated: 10:28 IST(7/2/2010)
Maoists blew up railway tracks to enforce their 72-hour bandh near Rajla station on Jhaja-Jasidih section of East Central Railway in Bihar's Jamui district, officials said today.
"About 40 Maoist guerrillas blew up the UP and DOWN tracks late last night between Rajla and Narganjo railway halts near Kahba bridge, affecting the movement of several long-distance and local trains," Additional Director General of Police (Headquarters) U S Dutt told PTI in Patna.
A stretch of 2.5 feet of UP line and five feet DOWN line were damaged by the impact of the blast, railway sources said.
While jawans of GRP, RPF and local police have reached the site, Divisional Railway Manager of Asansol, D K Gaien have also rushed to the spot in a special van to oversee the repair work, official sources said.
Maoists have called the bandh in Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh today to protest proposed "Operation Green Hunt" to be launched by Centre against the Maoists.
West Bengal wants coordinated action by naxal-affected States
At the forthcoming meeting with Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, West Bengal is likely to stress the need for co-ordinated action along the 600-km boundary that the State shares with Orissa and Jharkhand in the districts affected by ultra-Left extremism in these three States.
The State is also keen to take up the issue of joint operations, deployment of additional forces, the need to raise a State-level combat force and a training academy for raising such forces, at the meeting to be held at the Secretariat on February 9.
It is likely to be attended by the Chief Ministers of four eastern States -- West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa which are racked by ultra-Left extremist violence -- as well as the key officials of the respective State governments. However indications are that the Bihar Chief Minister may not attend the meeting.
A meeting of the Eastern Zonal Council of these four States was held in the city on Friday which discussed common issues and entities like the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC - which is co-owned by West Bengal, Jharkhand and the Centre), as also issues such as tribal development. It is also likely to be discussed at Tuesday’s meeting and the Centre has asked the four States to prepare a report on this.
West Bengal Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen told The Hindu that the State government would press for two things at the meeting with the Union Home Minister. “We will stress the need for raising a combat force of our own and also for joint operations and additional deployment.”
West Bengal Director-General of Police Bhupinder Singh said sharing of information between the four States and co-ordinated action among the States along the border areas of the Maoist strongholds was necessary. Of the three districts in West Bengal affected by Maoist activities — Purulia shared a 380-km border with Jharkhand, while Paschim Medinipur had a 96-km border with Jharkhand and a 107-km border with Orissa. Majority of these areas were thickly forested with difficult terrain, he said making it easy for the extremists to escape.
He said that while West Bengal had 17 police stations dotting this 600-km border, they needed to be manned and equipped better to tackle the Maoists.
The State is also keen to take up the issue of joint operations, deployment of additional forces, the need to raise a State-level combat force and a training academy for raising such forces, at the meeting to be held at the Secretariat on February 9.
It is likely to be attended by the Chief Ministers of four eastern States -- West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa which are racked by ultra-Left extremist violence -- as well as the key officials of the respective State governments. However indications are that the Bihar Chief Minister may not attend the meeting.
A meeting of the Eastern Zonal Council of these four States was held in the city on Friday which discussed common issues and entities like the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC - which is co-owned by West Bengal, Jharkhand and the Centre), as also issues such as tribal development. It is also likely to be discussed at Tuesday’s meeting and the Centre has asked the four States to prepare a report on this.
West Bengal Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen told The Hindu that the State government would press for two things at the meeting with the Union Home Minister. “We will stress the need for raising a combat force of our own and also for joint operations and additional deployment.”
West Bengal Director-General of Police Bhupinder Singh said sharing of information between the four States and co-ordinated action among the States along the border areas of the Maoist strongholds was necessary. Of the three districts in West Bengal affected by Maoist activities — Purulia shared a 380-km border with Jharkhand, while Paschim Medinipur had a 96-km border with Jharkhand and a 107-km border with Orissa. Majority of these areas were thickly forested with difficult terrain, he said making it easy for the extremists to escape.
He said that while West Bengal had 17 police stations dotting this 600-km border, they needed to be manned and equipped better to tackle the Maoists.
Naxals blow up rail tracks in Bengal, Bihar
CNN-IBN
New Delhi: Naxals have blown up the main railway line linking North India to Howrah in West Bengal.
Train services have been disrupted as the railway line was blown up at Jamui in Bihar
Several trains had already been cancelled on the route because of the 72-hour bandh called by the Naxals in four states.
"The bomb blast happened around 1230 hrs IST. 20 trains have been affected. Two of the trains were diverted. Two Delhi bound trains were detained at Jamtara and Roop Narayan station," said CPRO Eastern Railways Samir Goswami.
"Repairing work of the Railway track is on. Expecting the services to be restored later in the day," Goswami added.
Over half-a-dozen trains have been cancelled while the routes of many trains have been changed.
The Maoists have called a 72 hour Bandh in Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa.
All police stations in the naxal affected districts have been put on high alert. Additional forces of Special Auxiliary Police, Bihar Military Police and central para-military forces have been deployed. Maoists have called the bandh in protest against the joint police operations being launched against them by the four states.
New Delhi: Naxals have blown up the main railway line linking North India to Howrah in West Bengal.
Train services have been disrupted as the railway line was blown up at Jamui in Bihar
Several trains had already been cancelled on the route because of the 72-hour bandh called by the Naxals in four states.
"The bomb blast happened around 1230 hrs IST. 20 trains have been affected. Two of the trains were diverted. Two Delhi bound trains were detained at Jamtara and Roop Narayan station," said CPRO Eastern Railways Samir Goswami.
"Repairing work of the Railway track is on. Expecting the services to be restored later in the day," Goswami added.
Over half-a-dozen trains have been cancelled while the routes of many trains have been changed.
The Maoists have called a 72 hour Bandh in Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa.
All police stations in the naxal affected districts have been put on high alert. Additional forces of Special Auxiliary Police, Bihar Military Police and central para-military forces have been deployed. Maoists have called the bandh in protest against the joint police operations being launched against them by the four states.
CM's meet on Naxals underway in Delhi
CNN-IBN
New Delhi: The Naxal incidents in Bihar and West Bengal have taken place even as the Chief Ministers of various states take part in a meeting called by the Prime Minister to discuss internal security on Sunday.
The Meeting has begun in New Delhi and is likely to focus on tackling cross-border terrorism, Naxalism and chalking out the new security architecture among other issues
CNN-IBN has got access to the Home Ministry's internal note, which slams states' lack of preparedness to fight Naxals and terrorism.
The report says Maharashtra, one of the worst hit by terror, is far behind in modernisation of its security apparatus.
Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Andhra and Karnataka though have been lauded for their forensic infrastructure.
Another issue is the misuse of funds allocated for modernisation of policing system by the states.
Bihar and Madhya Pradesh have been rated poor on the use of funds.
New Delhi: The Naxal incidents in Bihar and West Bengal have taken place even as the Chief Ministers of various states take part in a meeting called by the Prime Minister to discuss internal security on Sunday.
The Meeting has begun in New Delhi and is likely to focus on tackling cross-border terrorism, Naxalism and chalking out the new security architecture among other issues
CNN-IBN has got access to the Home Ministry's internal note, which slams states' lack of preparedness to fight Naxals and terrorism.
The report says Maharashtra, one of the worst hit by terror, is far behind in modernisation of its security apparatus.
Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Andhra and Karnataka though have been lauded for their forensic infrastructure.
Another issue is the misuse of funds allocated for modernisation of policing system by the states.
Bihar and Madhya Pradesh have been rated poor on the use of funds.
Police displays eight bodies of Maoists killed in Chhattisgarh
Bijapur, February 05(ANI): Chhattisgarh police on Thursday displayed eight Maoists bodies who were killed in two separate incidents. Vedvrat Sirmour, Additional Superintendent of Police, Bijapur district while speaking to the reporters mentioned that these Maoists had attacked a police patrol and they were killed in the retaliatory fire.The gunfights broke out in thickly forested areas in Bijapur district, some 450 kilometers south of Raipur.
Police helds Maoist from Rayagada, displays recovered arms
Orissa, February 06(ANI): Police in Rayagada district in Orissa on Friday displayed the huge cache of arms and ammunition, recovered from the Maoist Ramesh Mambalika alias Purna who was arrested on Tuesday. Purna, also an explosive expert was nabbed from Tubani village in Gudari Police station area in eastern Orissa in a joint operation between the CRPF and the district police of Rayagada.
Cops seize Maoist documents from Red camps
TNN, 6 February 2010, 09:44pm IST
JAMSHEDPUR: The West Singhbhum police have seized important documents from the CPI(Maoist) transit camps in the hilly areas of Chaibasa subdivision on Saturday.
Paramilitary forces, together with officials of Jeraikela and Bandhgaon police stations, busted Maoist hideouts and destroyed two transit camps at Nuagaon village under Jeraikela police station in Chaibasa subdivision of West Singhbhum district.
Police informed that during long range patrolling (LRP), security personnel stumbled upon the hideouts and transit camps and immediately called upon additional forces for the operation.
"Police were on routine LRP when they encountered the transit camps. However, we have destroyed those and found important documents containing Maoist information," said Shambu Kumar, additional SP, in charge of operations in West Singhbhum.
He further informed that security personnel have also seized a pistol, two cartridges, Maoist literature and some food stuff, besides other documents relating to the Left-wing ultras from the site.
"No one has been arrested yet and police are atill at the site," said the ASP.
JAMSHEDPUR: The West Singhbhum police have seized important documents from the CPI(Maoist) transit camps in the hilly areas of Chaibasa subdivision on Saturday.
Paramilitary forces, together with officials of Jeraikela and Bandhgaon police stations, busted Maoist hideouts and destroyed two transit camps at Nuagaon village under Jeraikela police station in Chaibasa subdivision of West Singhbhum district.
Police informed that during long range patrolling (LRP), security personnel stumbled upon the hideouts and transit camps and immediately called upon additional forces for the operation.
"Police were on routine LRP when they encountered the transit camps. However, we have destroyed those and found important documents containing Maoist information," said Shambu Kumar, additional SP, in charge of operations in West Singhbhum.
He further informed that security personnel have also seized a pistol, two cartridges, Maoist literature and some food stuff, besides other documents relating to the Left-wing ultras from the site.
"No one has been arrested yet and police are atill at the site," said the ASP.
Maoists move fighters from Bastar to nearby States
K. SRINIVAS REDDY
Even as security forces intensified their efforts to push into the rebel-controlled Abuz Maad area in the Bastar forests of southern Chhattisgarh, the Maoist leadership is believed to have moved the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) fighters into Orissa, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Intelligence officers monitoring the Left Wing Extremist (LWE) activity believe that there are five companies (each with a strength of 100) of the PLGA, which has a strong presence in Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
NAXALS FAN OUT
Informed sources said two companies were moved to Orissa, one to Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh, one to Gadchiroli in Maharashtra and another to Jharkhand. Interestingly, all these areas abut Chhattisgarh. The idea behind the PLGA fighters spreading out was to avoid the possibility of being encircled by security forces in Abuz Maad, believed to be the operational command centre of the CPI (Maoist).
With the Union government liberally sanctioning paramilitary forces for the Maoist-affected States, the offensive, codenamed “Operation Greenhunt” had begun in varying degrees of intensity in different States. Apparently, the focal point of the operation in Chhattisgarh is to gain control over the nearly 4000 sq. km. of the Abuz Maad forest area and this is where skirmishes between rebels and the security forces are being reported with unfailing regularity.
TROOPS ZEROING IN
The security forces are able to inch their way into the heavily-mined areas of Abuz Maad since the battle-hardened PLGA rebels have moved out and the resistance being offered is by members of the people’s militia, 4,000 tribals trained in guerrilla warfare by Maoists. “The current operations, though not in full swing, would be useful for the paramilitary forces as they would get some knowledge of the difficult terrain,” said a senior officer involved in anti-extremist operations.
However, contrary to the impression given about “Operation Greenhunt,” the offensive is yet to begin in Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal, while Chhattisgarh has started making some strategic moves. Force deployment is continuing in these places, while Jharkhand appears to be trying to persuade Maoists to come to the negotiating table.
The Polit Bureau of the CPI (Maoist) has expressed its concern over the killing and arrest of senior Maoist leaders. In a review of the naxalite movement in 2009 on the occasion of the sixth anniversary of the formation of the outfit, it cautioned the party “to take serious steps to stop the continuous loss of leadership comrades at all levels” and counter the “enemy’s” [the State’s] “attempts to isolate us and build vast united fronts against reactionary forces.”
Terming “Operation Greenhunt” a “multi-pronged fascist offensive of ruling classes,” the Polit Bureau asked the leaders to study the concrete steps taken by the government in “our respective areas of operation.”
Even as security forces intensified their efforts to push into the rebel-controlled Abuz Maad area in the Bastar forests of southern Chhattisgarh, the Maoist leadership is believed to have moved the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) fighters into Orissa, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Intelligence officers monitoring the Left Wing Extremist (LWE) activity believe that there are five companies (each with a strength of 100) of the PLGA, which has a strong presence in Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
NAXALS FAN OUT
Informed sources said two companies were moved to Orissa, one to Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh, one to Gadchiroli in Maharashtra and another to Jharkhand. Interestingly, all these areas abut Chhattisgarh. The idea behind the PLGA fighters spreading out was to avoid the possibility of being encircled by security forces in Abuz Maad, believed to be the operational command centre of the CPI (Maoist).
With the Union government liberally sanctioning paramilitary forces for the Maoist-affected States, the offensive, codenamed “Operation Greenhunt” had begun in varying degrees of intensity in different States. Apparently, the focal point of the operation in Chhattisgarh is to gain control over the nearly 4000 sq. km. of the Abuz Maad forest area and this is where skirmishes between rebels and the security forces are being reported with unfailing regularity.
TROOPS ZEROING IN
The security forces are able to inch their way into the heavily-mined areas of Abuz Maad since the battle-hardened PLGA rebels have moved out and the resistance being offered is by members of the people’s militia, 4,000 tribals trained in guerrilla warfare by Maoists. “The current operations, though not in full swing, would be useful for the paramilitary forces as they would get some knowledge of the difficult terrain,” said a senior officer involved in anti-extremist operations.
However, contrary to the impression given about “Operation Greenhunt,” the offensive is yet to begin in Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal, while Chhattisgarh has started making some strategic moves. Force deployment is continuing in these places, while Jharkhand appears to be trying to persuade Maoists to come to the negotiating table.
The Polit Bureau of the CPI (Maoist) has expressed its concern over the killing and arrest of senior Maoist leaders. In a review of the naxalite movement in 2009 on the occasion of the sixth anniversary of the formation of the outfit, it cautioned the party “to take serious steps to stop the continuous loss of leadership comrades at all levels” and counter the “enemy’s” [the State’s] “attempts to isolate us and build vast united fronts against reactionary forces.”
Terming “Operation Greenhunt” a “multi-pronged fascist offensive of ruling classes,” the Polit Bureau asked the leaders to study the concrete steps taken by the government in “our respective areas of operation.”
Security tightened in Bihar in view of Maoist bandh
Patna, Feb 6 (PTI) Tight security arrangements have been made and police stations put on maximum alert in the naxal-hit districts of Bihar in view of the 72-hour bandh by the banned CPI (Maoist) beginning tomorrow to protest against 'Operation Green Hunt' to be launched by the Centre.
"We have made elaborate security arrangements in the naxal-hit districts across the state to tackle the activities of the ultras in Bihar," Director General of Police Anand Shanker said.
All police stations in the affected districts of Gaya, Nawada, Jehanabad, Nalanda, Aurangabad, Bhojpur, Rohtas, Kaimur, Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, Darbhanga and Madhubani have been put on maximum alert, the DGP said.
Extra attention would be paid to protect vital installations, Railways property, government buildings besides schools, which are considered a soft-target for the ultras, he said.
"We have made elaborate security arrangements in the naxal-hit districts across the state to tackle the activities of the ultras in Bihar," Director General of Police Anand Shanker said.
All police stations in the affected districts of Gaya, Nawada, Jehanabad, Nalanda, Aurangabad, Bhojpur, Rohtas, Kaimur, Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, Darbhanga and Madhubani have been put on maximum alert, the DGP said.
Extra attention would be paid to protect vital installations, Railways property, government buildings besides schools, which are considered a soft-target for the ultras, he said.
Hardcore Maoist arrested in Orissa with huge cache of arms
Saturday, February 6, 2010,12:12 [IST]
Bhubaneswar, Feb. 6 (ANI): A hardcore maoist, who is also an explosive expert, has been arrested with huge amount of arms and ammunition in Rayagada district of Orissa, police say.
Ramesh Mambalika alias Purna, who is suspected of his involvement in murder, arms and ammunition loot and landmine explosion, was arrested on Tuesday and arms and ammunition recovered from him were displayed to the media on Friday.
Acting upon specific information, CRPF and the district police of Rayagada nabbed Purna from Tubani village in Gudari Police station area.
Ammunition, including gelatines and several kilograms of splinters used in making of landmines, five country-made barrel guns were seized from him. Four identity cards were also recovered from his baggage.
"Ramesh Mambalika alias Purna, a Maoist has been arrested, who was a wanted criminal in many cases. There are several cases registered against him. He is a local organiser of the area and also a landmine explosive expert. He was also handling the dump in the Maoist affected areas," said Anup Krishna, Superintendent of Police, Rayagada.
The rebels operate in large parts of the eastern, central and southern countryside, and officials say they are now spreading to cities and bigger towns.
The rebels have ignored repeated calls to renounce violence and negotiate, and have stepped up their attacks in recent past months, prompting the government to go after them in a concerted strike.
The Maoists are armed with sophisticated arms and ammunition, assault rifles and even communication tools.
Thousands have been killed in the Maoist insurgency, which began in the late 1960s. (ANI)
Bhubaneswar, Feb. 6 (ANI): A hardcore maoist, who is also an explosive expert, has been arrested with huge amount of arms and ammunition in Rayagada district of Orissa, police say.
Ramesh Mambalika alias Purna, who is suspected of his involvement in murder, arms and ammunition loot and landmine explosion, was arrested on Tuesday and arms and ammunition recovered from him were displayed to the media on Friday.
Acting upon specific information, CRPF and the district police of Rayagada nabbed Purna from Tubani village in Gudari Police station area.
Ammunition, including gelatines and several kilograms of splinters used in making of landmines, five country-made barrel guns were seized from him. Four identity cards were also recovered from his baggage.
"Ramesh Mambalika alias Purna, a Maoist has been arrested, who was a wanted criminal in many cases. There are several cases registered against him. He is a local organiser of the area and also a landmine explosive expert. He was also handling the dump in the Maoist affected areas," said Anup Krishna, Superintendent of Police, Rayagada.
The rebels operate in large parts of the eastern, central and southern countryside, and officials say they are now spreading to cities and bigger towns.
The rebels have ignored repeated calls to renounce violence and negotiate, and have stepped up their attacks in recent past months, prompting the government to go after them in a concerted strike.
The Maoists are armed with sophisticated arms and ammunition, assault rifles and even communication tools.
Thousands have been killed in the Maoist insurgency, which began in the late 1960s. (ANI)
Formation of brigade battalion in Orissa sought
Express News Service
First Published : 05 Feb 2010 05:45:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 05 Feb 2010 08:21:32 AM IST
BHUBANESWAR: The State Government has proposed establishment of a brigade battalion of the Army in Orissa.
The proposal was discussed at the civil- military liaison conference cochaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Lieutenant General JK Mohanty, GOC-in-C of central command.
The State Government has agreed to provide 1,600 acres of land at Balasore for setting up the battalion. The Defence Ministry will take a final decision in the matter.
The State Government is also prepared to provide land to the Army for establishment of its camps in Western and Southern Orissa. Chief secretary TK Mishra told mediapersons after the conference that the State Government is hopeful of establishment of the brigade battalion in Orissa. He said that the battalion of the territorial army at Bhubaneswar is not a full-fledged one.
The State Government also proposed that physical criteria for recruitment to the Army should be relaxed in case of youths from Southern Orissa who are mostly tribals. He hoped that the Defence Ministry will take a decision on the matter soon.
Lt Gen Mohanty said that opening of another sainik school in Western Orissa is under active consideration of the Army. The school will be set up either at Sambalpur or Bargarh. The Chief Secretary said that problems facing the sainik school at Bhubaneswar were discussed.
The State Government has agreed to provide necessary fund for repair of the school, he said. The proposal for opening of four more district sainik boards was discussed.
Opening of the boards in Keonjhar and Koraput districts has been finalised while a decision will be taken on opening of the boards in Bolangir and Sundargarh districts.
The Chief Secretary said that the State Government agreed to the proposal for providing land for polyclinics for Army personnel at Sambalpur, Puri, Angul, Koraput, Bhawanipatna and Dhenkanal. Now there are three polyclinis for the Army personnel at Bhubaneswar, Balasore and Berhampur.
The issue of acceptance of the model welfare package by the State to revise ex gratia payment for armed forces personnel who lay down their lives or get disabled due to injury in counter insurgency operations was discussed.
It was decided that the State Government will honour winners of gallantry and distinguished service awards on the Independence Day and the Republic Day. It was proposed that 3 per cent reservation for ex-servicemen in jobs should be increased by the State Government.
To a question, Lt Gen Mohanty said that the Army was ready to provide all assistance to the State Government to combat the Naxalites. He said that the Army had been training the police on improvised explosives device (IED).
First Published : 05 Feb 2010 05:45:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 05 Feb 2010 08:21:32 AM IST
BHUBANESWAR: The State Government has proposed establishment of a brigade battalion of the Army in Orissa.
The proposal was discussed at the civil- military liaison conference cochaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Lieutenant General JK Mohanty, GOC-in-C of central command.
The State Government has agreed to provide 1,600 acres of land at Balasore for setting up the battalion. The Defence Ministry will take a final decision in the matter.
The State Government is also prepared to provide land to the Army for establishment of its camps in Western and Southern Orissa. Chief secretary TK Mishra told mediapersons after the conference that the State Government is hopeful of establishment of the brigade battalion in Orissa. He said that the battalion of the territorial army at Bhubaneswar is not a full-fledged one.
The State Government also proposed that physical criteria for recruitment to the Army should be relaxed in case of youths from Southern Orissa who are mostly tribals. He hoped that the Defence Ministry will take a decision on the matter soon.
Lt Gen Mohanty said that opening of another sainik school in Western Orissa is under active consideration of the Army. The school will be set up either at Sambalpur or Bargarh. The Chief Secretary said that problems facing the sainik school at Bhubaneswar were discussed.
The State Government has agreed to provide necessary fund for repair of the school, he said. The proposal for opening of four more district sainik boards was discussed.
Opening of the boards in Keonjhar and Koraput districts has been finalised while a decision will be taken on opening of the boards in Bolangir and Sundargarh districts.
The Chief Secretary said that the State Government agreed to the proposal for providing land for polyclinics for Army personnel at Sambalpur, Puri, Angul, Koraput, Bhawanipatna and Dhenkanal. Now there are three polyclinis for the Army personnel at Bhubaneswar, Balasore and Berhampur.
The issue of acceptance of the model welfare package by the State to revise ex gratia payment for armed forces personnel who lay down their lives or get disabled due to injury in counter insurgency operations was discussed.
It was decided that the State Government will honour winners of gallantry and distinguished service awards on the Independence Day and the Republic Day. It was proposed that 3 per cent reservation for ex-servicemen in jobs should be increased by the State Government.
To a question, Lt Gen Mohanty said that the Army was ready to provide all assistance to the State Government to combat the Naxalites. He said that the Army had been training the police on improvised explosives device (IED).
CMs conference on internal security tomorrow
New Delhi, Feb 6 (PTI) A new security architecture outlined by Home Minister P Chidambaram, pro-active action against Naxals and increased infiltration attempts from across Indo-Pak border will be high on the agenda of a meeting of chief ministers convened by the Centre here tomorrow.
The meeting, to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will also focus on strengthening of counter terrorism and intelligence capabilities, strengthening the border and coastal security.
The Conference assumes importance against the backdrop of the proactive policy being pursued by the government to combat naxalism, increased infiltration attempts from across Indo-Pak border and the success of anti-terror measures in the past six to eight months.
Cross-border terrorism will also be discussed threadbare at the day-long conference organised by the Home Ministry.
The meeting, to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will also focus on strengthening of counter terrorism and intelligence capabilities, strengthening the border and coastal security.
The Conference assumes importance against the backdrop of the proactive policy being pursued by the government to combat naxalism, increased infiltration attempts from across Indo-Pak border and the success of anti-terror measures in the past six to eight months.
Cross-border terrorism will also be discussed threadbare at the day-long conference organised by the Home Ministry.
Maoist training camp smashed in Jharkhand
Chaibasa (Jharkhand), Feb 6 (PTI) A Maoist training camp was today smashed in West Singhbhum district after a fierce encounter between police and ultra-left cadre.
The district police force was on regular combing operation jointly with para-military force jawans in naxal-affected areas when the encounter took place at Nawagaon in West Singhbhum bordering Orissa, police said.
DIG (Kolhan) Manoj Mishra told PTI that a training camp of the CPI(Maoists) was smashed following the encounter.
There was no report of any casualty in the encounter that lasted for about an hour.
Large-scale recovery of fire-arms was made during the operation, details of which were awaited, Mishra said.
The encounter came just ahead of the 72-hour proposed Jharkhand bandh called by the ultra outfit from tomorrow midnight.
The Maoists have called the bandh in protest against the government's proposed anti-naxal 'Green Hunt" operation to be launched soon in the state
The district police force was on regular combing operation jointly with para-military force jawans in naxal-affected areas when the encounter took place at Nawagaon in West Singhbhum bordering Orissa, police said.
DIG (Kolhan) Manoj Mishra told PTI that a training camp of the CPI(Maoists) was smashed following the encounter.
There was no report of any casualty in the encounter that lasted for about an hour.
Large-scale recovery of fire-arms was made during the operation, details of which were awaited, Mishra said.
The encounter came just ahead of the 72-hour proposed Jharkhand bandh called by the ultra outfit from tomorrow midnight.
The Maoists have called the bandh in protest against the government's proposed anti-naxal 'Green Hunt" operation to be launched soon in the state
Friday, February 05, 2010
Maoists torch road construction firm's machines
Patna, Feb 6 : Suspected Maoists torched several machines of a road construction company here early Saturday, police said.
The guerrillas set on fire two JCB machines, two dumpers and two tractors of a construction company at Dulhinbazar in Patna, creating panic among the workers and officials of the firm.
Maoists apparently targeted the construction company for levies, police said. A case has been lodged and search operations underway to trace the Maoists in rural Patna.
Copyright Indo Asian News
The guerrillas set on fire two JCB machines, two dumpers and two tractors of a construction company at Dulhinbazar in Patna, creating panic among the workers and officials of the firm.
Maoists apparently targeted the construction company for levies, police said. A case has been lodged and search operations underway to trace the Maoists in rural Patna.
Copyright Indo Asian News
Marching against Maoists
At the Chhattisgarh Jungle Warfare College, set up in 2005 in Kanker, the ground is set for ‘Operation Green Hunt’
Krishnamurthy Ramasubbu
Indian security personnel who’ve been fighting Maoists in the forests of central India over the last five years say their firefights don’t last more than 30-60 seconds. At the end, those who buckle—the untrained—are, more often than not, dead.
According to data from the Chhattisgarh police headquarters, the year 2008 alone saw 234 such encounters with the police, leaving 66 Maoists and 64 security personnel dead.
Click here to view a slideshow
The police estimate there are around 60,000 Maoists in the Bastar region, which comprises the southern part of Chhattisgarh. They are armed with light machine guns, AK-series guns, self-loading rifles, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades.
For untrained police personnel, fighting in Chhattisgarh’s dense Abhujmadh forests is difficult. “In terms of firepower, (the Maoists) are equivalent to the army. We have to have more numbers to offset them,” says Chhattisgarh director general of police Vishwa Ranjan. And since October, when the Union cabinet approved ‘Operation Green Hunt’, Central paramilitary forces consisting of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and India Reserve battalions have been arriving in large numbers (unofficial estimates place the figures at 80,000) in Chhattisgarh.
It’s in this scenario that the Chhattisgarh Jungle Warfare (CTJW) College, set up by the state government in Kanker in 2005, assumes centre stage. At Kanker, near the state’s capital Raipur, police and paramilitary personnel get training in six-week modules—six each year, with each accommodating 600 personnel. The grey areas in police training are addressed, including “lack of soldierly and disciplinary traits; lack of physical and mental robustness; lack of knowledge of field craft and tactics and poor firing skills”.
Union home minister P. Chidambaram has denied the existence of an operation named Green Hunt, though the government does acknowledge the existence of an operation to reclaim areas from Maoists and establish government institutions there. For the Union government, it seems, Operation Green Hunt is a mythical creature, mostly denied, but resurrected when convenient.
Certainly, no major offensives have been launched so far. The state police and Union home ministry give several reasons for this, including lack of adequate preparation, the Jharkhand assembly elections and most recently, the observance of Republic Day.
But though no real gains have been possible, the preparations at least seem to be making headway. After training at the college, police personnel are inducted into the Special Task Force (STF). In a June report for the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, a Delhi-based defence think tank, Om Shankar Jha, a Border Security Force (BSF) commandant, observed that STF personnel perform better in anti-Maoist operations, with the fewest casualties, indicating some success for the training programme. According to the report, the Union government is conceptualizing another jungle warfare college for the state.
Despite it all, Lieutenant Colonel Joginder Singh, deputy director of CTJW College, observes that it is difficult for government forces to completely overcome Maoists. “What we can do is to establish government institutions and provide support. I think about 80-90% of those living in the forests are neutral and only about 10% are Maoists or their supporters.” The major part of the effort, he says, should be to woo them with civic action—apparently, the STF personnel are trained in this too.
Krishnamurthy Ramasubbu
Indian security personnel who’ve been fighting Maoists in the forests of central India over the last five years say their firefights don’t last more than 30-60 seconds. At the end, those who buckle—the untrained—are, more often than not, dead.
According to data from the Chhattisgarh police headquarters, the year 2008 alone saw 234 such encounters with the police, leaving 66 Maoists and 64 security personnel dead.
Click here to view a slideshow
The police estimate there are around 60,000 Maoists in the Bastar region, which comprises the southern part of Chhattisgarh. They are armed with light machine guns, AK-series guns, self-loading rifles, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades.
For untrained police personnel, fighting in Chhattisgarh’s dense Abhujmadh forests is difficult. “In terms of firepower, (the Maoists) are equivalent to the army. We have to have more numbers to offset them,” says Chhattisgarh director general of police Vishwa Ranjan. And since October, when the Union cabinet approved ‘Operation Green Hunt’, Central paramilitary forces consisting of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and India Reserve battalions have been arriving in large numbers (unofficial estimates place the figures at 80,000) in Chhattisgarh.
It’s in this scenario that the Chhattisgarh Jungle Warfare (CTJW) College, set up by the state government in Kanker in 2005, assumes centre stage. At Kanker, near the state’s capital Raipur, police and paramilitary personnel get training in six-week modules—six each year, with each accommodating 600 personnel. The grey areas in police training are addressed, including “lack of soldierly and disciplinary traits; lack of physical and mental robustness; lack of knowledge of field craft and tactics and poor firing skills”.
Union home minister P. Chidambaram has denied the existence of an operation named Green Hunt, though the government does acknowledge the existence of an operation to reclaim areas from Maoists and establish government institutions there. For the Union government, it seems, Operation Green Hunt is a mythical creature, mostly denied, but resurrected when convenient.
Certainly, no major offensives have been launched so far. The state police and Union home ministry give several reasons for this, including lack of adequate preparation, the Jharkhand assembly elections and most recently, the observance of Republic Day.
But though no real gains have been possible, the preparations at least seem to be making headway. After training at the college, police personnel are inducted into the Special Task Force (STF). In a June report for the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, a Delhi-based defence think tank, Om Shankar Jha, a Border Security Force (BSF) commandant, observed that STF personnel perform better in anti-Maoist operations, with the fewest casualties, indicating some success for the training programme. According to the report, the Union government is conceptualizing another jungle warfare college for the state.
Despite it all, Lieutenant Colonel Joginder Singh, deputy director of CTJW College, observes that it is difficult for government forces to completely overcome Maoists. “What we can do is to establish government institutions and provide support. I think about 80-90% of those living in the forests are neutral and only about 10% are Maoists or their supporters.” The major part of the effort, he says, should be to woo them with civic action—apparently, the STF personnel are trained in this too.
Cop posted in Maoist-hit area kills himself
IANS, 6 February 2010, 11:29am IST
RAIPUR: Apparently upset over being posted in a Maoist-affected area, a 27-year-old policeman shot himself with his service revolver in Chhattisgarh, authorities said Saturday.
Constable Pankaj Singh had just been brought from Kawardha district to the restive Rajnandgaon district, where the state government has stepped up anti-Maoist operations. He killed himself Friday at the Chichola police station.
"The exact reason for the extreme act is yet to be known. But his colleagues confirmed that Pankaj was disturbed over his new posting in the district that has witnessed several Maoist attacks," a police officer said.
In one of the deadliest attacks, Maoists had killed 29 policemen in Rajnandgaon district bordering Maharashtra in July last year. District police chief B.K. Choubey was among those killed.
RAIPUR: Apparently upset over being posted in a Maoist-affected area, a 27-year-old policeman shot himself with his service revolver in Chhattisgarh, authorities said Saturday.
Constable Pankaj Singh had just been brought from Kawardha district to the restive Rajnandgaon district, where the state government has stepped up anti-Maoist operations. He killed himself Friday at the Chichola police station.
"The exact reason for the extreme act is yet to be known. But his colleagues confirmed that Pankaj was disturbed over his new posting in the district that has witnessed several Maoist attacks," a police officer said.
In one of the deadliest attacks, Maoists had killed 29 policemen in Rajnandgaon district bordering Maharashtra in July last year. District police chief B.K. Choubey was among those killed.
Indudwar beheading: Jharkhand Police arrest six Naxals
Friday, February 5, 2010,11:47 [IST]
Ranchi, Feb 5 (ANI): Jharkhand Police on Friday made a big headway in the investigation of brutal beheading of police officer Francis Indudwar with the arrest of six Naxals, including Gobardhan Munda who is suspected to be involved in the deed.
Buzz up!
The arrested Naxals also include two women activists.
The Naxals were arrested from Surakocha village which falls under the Arki police station of Khunti District.
Speaking to ANI, Khunti District Superintendent of Police, Asit Vikrant Minj said: "The police have prepared a list of 50 to 60 Maoists and their supporters suspected to be involved or supported the killing of Francis Indudwar and the arrested Naxals names are also listed."
Police suspect that the arrested Naxals might have provided logistic support for Indudwar's killing.
"The inquiry of the arrested is going on and will give the details very soon," Minj added.
On September 30, 2009, a Special Branch Inspector Induwar was abducted and beheaded by Naxals.
His mutilated body was found October 5 on a highway. (ANI)
Ranchi, Feb 5 (ANI): Jharkhand Police on Friday made a big headway in the investigation of brutal beheading of police officer Francis Indudwar with the arrest of six Naxals, including Gobardhan Munda who is suspected to be involved in the deed.
Buzz up!
The arrested Naxals also include two women activists.
The Naxals were arrested from Surakocha village which falls under the Arki police station of Khunti District.
Speaking to ANI, Khunti District Superintendent of Police, Asit Vikrant Minj said: "The police have prepared a list of 50 to 60 Maoists and their supporters suspected to be involved or supported the killing of Francis Indudwar and the arrested Naxals names are also listed."
Police suspect that the arrested Naxals might have provided logistic support for Indudwar's killing.
"The inquiry of the arrested is going on and will give the details very soon," Minj added.
On September 30, 2009, a Special Branch Inspector Induwar was abducted and beheaded by Naxals.
His mutilated body was found October 5 on a highway. (ANI)
Top brass of 4 Naxal-hit states hold strategy session
Kolkata, Feb 5 (PTI) Ahead of Union Home Minister P Chidambaram's meeting with chief ministers of four Naxal- affected states next week, top bureaucrats of these states today held a strategy session here on the roadmap for dealing with the menace.
While Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal were represented by their chief secretaries, Jharkhand was represented by its home secretary, officials sources said.
West Bengal Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen also attended the meeting held to discuss internal security, flood control, tribal development and disaster management.
Though there was no official briefing, the main agenda of the February 9 meeting -- strategies to tackle the Maoist menace in the region -- was believed to have been discussed.
The union home minister has called a meeting of chief ministers of the four states here on February 9 primarily to finalise strategies for tackling the Maoists in the region.
While Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal were represented by their chief secretaries, Jharkhand was represented by its home secretary, officials sources said.
West Bengal Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen also attended the meeting held to discuss internal security, flood control, tribal development and disaster management.
Though there was no official briefing, the main agenda of the February 9 meeting -- strategies to tackle the Maoist menace in the region -- was believed to have been discussed.
The union home minister has called a meeting of chief ministers of the four states here on February 9 primarily to finalise strategies for tackling the Maoists in the region.
Police detected a 10-kg landmine in Naxal-hit Jharkhand district Posted by IANS-CT in National
Ranchi, Feb 5 (IANS) Police detected a 10-kg landmine planted under a bridge Friday and defused it, foiling a Maoist bid to blow up police vehicles pasing that way in Giridih district of Jharkhand.
According to police, security personnel on Long Range Patrolling (LRP) detected wires near Dibra bridge, under Dumri police station of Giridih, around 170 km from here.
Police traced the wire to a 10-kg landmine planted under the bridge. The landmine has been defused.
Jharkhand has witnessed several cases of landmine blasts by Maoists, targetting police vehicles.
According to police, security personnel on Long Range Patrolling (LRP) detected wires near Dibra bridge, under Dumri police station of Giridih, around 170 km from here.
Police traced the wire to a 10-kg landmine planted under the bridge. The landmine has been defused.
Jharkhand has witnessed several cases of landmine blasts by Maoists, targetting police vehicles.
'Jharkhand will co-op with Centre to combat Maoists'
Dhanbad (Jharkhand), Feb 5 (PTI) Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren has said his coalition government is committed to follow the Centre's policy on containing the Maoists.
"There is no need for a separate policy on the issue when the Centre has already formed one," Soren told reporters here yesterday.
"Our government will fully cooperate with the union government on this issue," he said.
Soren will visit Kolkata on February nine to take part in the proposed meeting of chief ministers of four Naxal-affected states with Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.
CRPF DG Vijay Raman had yesterday held a meeting with Jharkhand police chief Niaz Ahmed and other police officials regarding the issue yesterday.
The state security forces were ready to join any anti-Maoist operation in the state, sources said.
"There is no need for a separate policy on the issue when the Centre has already formed one," Soren told reporters here yesterday.
"Our government will fully cooperate with the union government on this issue," he said.
Soren will visit Kolkata on February nine to take part in the proposed meeting of chief ministers of four Naxal-affected states with Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.
CRPF DG Vijay Raman had yesterday held a meeting with Jharkhand police chief Niaz Ahmed and other police officials regarding the issue yesterday.
The state security forces were ready to join any anti-Maoist operation in the state, sources said.
Three suspected PLFI activists held in Jharkhand
Gumla (Jharkhand), Feb 5 (PTI) Three suspected activists of Naxal outfit 'People's Liberation Front of India' (PLFI) have been arrested and two pistols seized from them in the district, police said today.
Police arrested Vikram Lohra, Babu Bak and Pyarelal Lakra after intercepting their motorbike at Sankhmohal under Raidih police station late last night.
One 9mm pistol and a country-made one were seized from them.
Police believed that the trio used to work under PLFI's self-styled Zonal Commander, Mangal Nagesia
Police arrested Vikram Lohra, Babu Bak and Pyarelal Lakra after intercepting their motorbike at Sankhmohal under Raidih police station late last night.
One 9mm pistol and a country-made one were seized from them.
Police believed that the trio used to work under PLFI's self-styled Zonal Commander, Mangal Nagesia
Administrator to attend CMs' meet
TNN, 6 February 2010, 02:45am IST
CHANDIGARH: UT administrator Shivraj Patil will attend a high-level meeting of chief ministers in New Delhi on Sunday. India’s internal security
situation will be discussed during that. He and adviser to UT administrator, Pradip Mehra, will also attend the CMs’ conference on price rise to be held on Saturday. In the conference, the role of traders in creating a major gap between wholesale and retail prices will be discussed along with ways to strictly deal with hoarding.
Prime Minister is expected to attend the second meeting that home minister P Chidambram has convened. In that, the status of negotiations with militant outfits and rise in extortions and killings are expected to figure. A major portion of that will be dedicated to dealing with naxal-related violence in various states.
CHANDIGARH: UT administrator Shivraj Patil will attend a high-level meeting of chief ministers in New Delhi on Sunday. India’s internal security
situation will be discussed during that. He and adviser to UT administrator, Pradip Mehra, will also attend the CMs’ conference on price rise to be held on Saturday. In the conference, the role of traders in creating a major gap between wholesale and retail prices will be discussed along with ways to strictly deal with hoarding.
Prime Minister is expected to attend the second meeting that home minister P Chidambram has convened. In that, the status of negotiations with militant outfits and rise in extortions and killings are expected to figure. A major portion of that will be dedicated to dealing with naxal-related violence in various states.
For Jharkhand govt, force not prescription for Naxal cure
Sabyasachi Bandopadhyay Posted online: Saturday , Feb 06, 2010 at 0357 hrs
Kolkata : Ahead of the crucial meeting on curbing the rising Naxal problem in the four states of Bengal, Orissa, Jharkhand and Bihar, a senior official of the Jharkhand government has raised questions on the efficacy of security operations against the ultras.
Speaking to The Indian Express, J B Tubid, Principal Secretary (Home) in the Jharkhand government, said, “You cannot hold a gun at somebody’s head and solve the (Naxalite) problem. It is not that easy.”
“The problem cannot be solved by mere induction of force only. There has to be a holistic approach (to tackle the Maoist problem), at the root of which development of the areas and people is required,” Tubid said.
“By mere induction of forces, by killing them, can you solve the problem? We don’t think so. A lot of other things have to be done. One has to be lenient about this,” Tubid added.
He, however, denied allegations that the Jharkhand government was not serious in tackling the Maoist problem in the state.
“We had a lot of meetings with the West Bengal government and questions were never raised on us being lenient (towards Maoists),” Tubid said.
But at the same time, Tubid raised apprehension on the functioning of the “joint operations”. “How can there be a joint force? Law and order is a state subject. If the Naxalites strike in West Bengal, the Bengal police cannot come to Jharkhand. Similarly, we also cannot go to Orissa. If there is a joint force then someone from the Central government should head it,” he added. The Jharkhand Home Secretary was in Kolkata to attend a meeting of Eastern Zonal Council, which was also attended by Asok Mohan Chakrabarti, Chief Secretary of West Bengal, Bengal Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen, Orissa Chief Secretary Tarun Kanti Mishra and Bihar Chief Secretary Anup Kumar Mukherjee.
On February 9, chief ministers of the four states will be in Kolkata to attend a meeting on the Naxal problem, which will be presided over by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.
Kolkata : Ahead of the crucial meeting on curbing the rising Naxal problem in the four states of Bengal, Orissa, Jharkhand and Bihar, a senior official of the Jharkhand government has raised questions on the efficacy of security operations against the ultras.
Speaking to The Indian Express, J B Tubid, Principal Secretary (Home) in the Jharkhand government, said, “You cannot hold a gun at somebody’s head and solve the (Naxalite) problem. It is not that easy.”
“The problem cannot be solved by mere induction of force only. There has to be a holistic approach (to tackle the Maoist problem), at the root of which development of the areas and people is required,” Tubid said.
“By mere induction of forces, by killing them, can you solve the problem? We don’t think so. A lot of other things have to be done. One has to be lenient about this,” Tubid added.
He, however, denied allegations that the Jharkhand government was not serious in tackling the Maoist problem in the state.
“We had a lot of meetings with the West Bengal government and questions were never raised on us being lenient (towards Maoists),” Tubid said.
But at the same time, Tubid raised apprehension on the functioning of the “joint operations”. “How can there be a joint force? Law and order is a state subject. If the Naxalites strike in West Bengal, the Bengal police cannot come to Jharkhand. Similarly, we also cannot go to Orissa. If there is a joint force then someone from the Central government should head it,” he added. The Jharkhand Home Secretary was in Kolkata to attend a meeting of Eastern Zonal Council, which was also attended by Asok Mohan Chakrabarti, Chief Secretary of West Bengal, Bengal Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen, Orissa Chief Secretary Tarun Kanti Mishra and Bihar Chief Secretary Anup Kumar Mukherjee.
On February 9, chief ministers of the four states will be in Kolkata to attend a meeting on the Naxal problem, which will be presided over by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.
Maoism has no future: Woman insurgent
Sujeet KumarFirst Published : 05 Feb 2010 03:43:44 PM IST
BASTAR FOREST, Chhattisgarh: After over five years in the underground, Poriyam Poje feels that the Maoist movement has no future and that its activists have turned into robbers and killers.
The 27-year-old tribal woman says that she has no more charm for the insurgency that has been described as the biggest internal security threat to India.
Having seen the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) from close quarters, Poje is ready to bid goodbye to the politics of terror.
Speaking to IANS at a forested stretch near the Chhattisgarh-Andhra Pradesh border, Poje said that Maoists had drifted from their ideology and were acting like "robbers, extortionists and murders".
"I was fascinated by Maoist ideology initially when the 'dadas' (their leaders) assured me that we will overthrow the Indian government. Now I can say that the movement has no future as the members and leaders are behaving like murderers, robbers and extortionists," she said.
Poje belongs to Muria tribe and operates a 12-bore gun. She is a member of Vijay Dalam, one of the party's armed units. Poje spoke to IANS through the help of a long-time source.
The sprawling and forested Bastar region, home to many tribes, is a known Maoist stronghold and lies in Chhattisgarh's southern parts.
"Dadas are now acting in Bastar as robbers and only killing innocents and extorting money from traders and individuals. There is too much sexual exploitation of women cadres at Naxal (Maoist) camps," she said, speaking in broken Hindi. Poje is at home in Gondi dialect.
"In the past five years I have witnessed several incidents of forced sex. People have also misbehaved with me several times. They have killed minor boys and girls brutally when their parents refused to hand over them for the Naxalite movement. That's why I have decided to return to the mainstream of society rather than being engaged in mindless killings."
Poje, who was accompanied by a handful of male guerrillas when she spoke to IANS, said it was some five years ago when she was taken away by Maoists forcibly from her house.
That was when the Maoists were forcing every family to part with one member each for the cause. In just one year, she learnt to fire from a 12 bore gun.
"I had no fear of the police. I was involved in at least six major attacks in Bastar. But now I have firmed up my mind to return to my village as there is no end to looting and violence.
"I feel that the Maoists have no ideology. There is too much forced sex and exploitation of women colleagues at the camps," said Poje, who is now looking for a man to marry.
"Though the 'dadas' claim their base is growing, actually in the past one year or so they have come under intense police pressure. They are running from one forest area to another. Even their area of influence is shrinking day by day," she said.
IANS
BASTAR FOREST, Chhattisgarh: After over five years in the underground, Poriyam Poje feels that the Maoist movement has no future and that its activists have turned into robbers and killers.
The 27-year-old tribal woman says that she has no more charm for the insurgency that has been described as the biggest internal security threat to India.
Having seen the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) from close quarters, Poje is ready to bid goodbye to the politics of terror.
Speaking to IANS at a forested stretch near the Chhattisgarh-Andhra Pradesh border, Poje said that Maoists had drifted from their ideology and were acting like "robbers, extortionists and murders".
"I was fascinated by Maoist ideology initially when the 'dadas' (their leaders) assured me that we will overthrow the Indian government. Now I can say that the movement has no future as the members and leaders are behaving like murderers, robbers and extortionists," she said.
Poje belongs to Muria tribe and operates a 12-bore gun. She is a member of Vijay Dalam, one of the party's armed units. Poje spoke to IANS through the help of a long-time source.
The sprawling and forested Bastar region, home to many tribes, is a known Maoist stronghold and lies in Chhattisgarh's southern parts.
"Dadas are now acting in Bastar as robbers and only killing innocents and extorting money from traders and individuals. There is too much sexual exploitation of women cadres at Naxal (Maoist) camps," she said, speaking in broken Hindi. Poje is at home in Gondi dialect.
"In the past five years I have witnessed several incidents of forced sex. People have also misbehaved with me several times. They have killed minor boys and girls brutally when their parents refused to hand over them for the Naxalite movement. That's why I have decided to return to the mainstream of society rather than being engaged in mindless killings."
Poje, who was accompanied by a handful of male guerrillas when she spoke to IANS, said it was some five years ago when she was taken away by Maoists forcibly from her house.
That was when the Maoists were forcing every family to part with one member each for the cause. In just one year, she learnt to fire from a 12 bore gun.
"I had no fear of the police. I was involved in at least six major attacks in Bastar. But now I have firmed up my mind to return to my village as there is no end to looting and violence.
"I feel that the Maoists have no ideology. There is too much forced sex and exploitation of women colleagues at the camps," said Poje, who is now looking for a man to marry.
"Though the 'dadas' claim their base is growing, actually in the past one year or so they have come under intense police pressure. They are running from one forest area to another. Even their area of influence is shrinking day by day," she said.
IANS
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