MP gears up to take Naxals by the horns

In a tacit admission that mere policing will not stop the infiltration of left-wing extremists from Naxal-hit Chhattisgarh, the Madhya Pradesh Government will come out with a cohesive strategy to tackle the menace by involving both senior police officers and bureaucrats from Naxal-hit districts.

In a tacit admission that mere policing will not stop the infiltration of left-wing extremists from Naxal-hit Chhattisgarh, the Madhya Pradesh Government will come out with a cohesive strategy to tackle the menace by involving both senior police officers and bureaucrats from Naxal-hit districts.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will meet Collectors, Divisional Commissioners, SPs and Range IGs of areas affected by the menace, on Monday. Chief Secretary Rakesh Sahni and Home department officials will also attend.

Late on Thursday, extremists shot dead a farmer, accusing him of being a police informer, in Satona village under Lanji police station in Balaghat. Balaghat, Mandla and Dindori districts in MP have already been declared Naxal-hit and the state government has requested the Centre to identify Sidhi district as well. However, the Centre is yet to accept the demand that will enable the state to get reimbursement of money spent on policing. ADGP (Intelligence) S K Raut said there were visible movements of extremists in Sidhi.

The Government recently announced a slew of development projects in Balaghat where the presence of Naxalites is well documented. Only on Friday, the state increased its budget to tackle the menace by nearly Rs 5 crore.

In the Thursday night incident in the district, members of Tanda Dalam beat up Mangal Gond and his son Durga holding them responsible for tipping the police that led to the arrest of two of their members. Naxalites later shot dead Durga, 35, and warned villagers not to befriend the police. The police clarified that the victim was not an informer.

Naxalites had also caused extensive damage by burning depots of tendu leaves in Balaghat a couple of months ago.

Chouhan had raised the state’s concerns at a recent meeting the Prime Minister had with Chief Ministers of Naxal-affected states. The state’s demand for a helicopter is long pending. Madhya Pradesh had raised objections when the Centre moved a CRPF battalion from Balaghat to Dantewada following sudden increase in violence there in the wake of anti-Naxalite Salva Judum campaign.

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The state had argued that the presence of the battalion had helped control Naxal activity and Naxalites could infiltrate if it was not posted back soon. While two CRPF companies have returned to Balaghat, the remaining four will come back soon.