Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired the review meeting on Left
Wing Extremism (LWE) on Friday.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, his deputy Devendra
Fadnavis, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Jharkhand
Chief Minister Hemant Soren also attended the meeting aimed at preparing a
roadmap to completely root out the Left Wing Extremism or Naxalism from the
country and review the actions taken so far.
Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda, Union Minister of State for
Home Nityanand Rai; Union Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and
Public Distribution and Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ashwini Choubey;
and Minister of State for Communications Devusinh Chauhan as well as National
Security Advisor Ajit Doval also took part in the meeting.
Home Secretary Ajay Bhala, Director Intelligence Bureau Tapan Deka
and Director Generals of NIA, SSB, BSF, CRPF, BSF and NSG also attended the
meeting along with Home Secretaries and Chief Secretaries of naxal-affected States.
Earlier in the day, before joining the meeting, Home Minister Amit
Shah took to X, to share his views and termed Naxalism a “curse to humanity”,
saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Central Government is committed to
uprooting Naxalism in all its forms.
“Naxalism is a curse to humanity and we are resolved to uproot it
in all its forms. I look forward to chairing the Review Meeting on Left Wing
Extremism (LWE) in New Delhi today to further our efforts to fulfil PM Narendra
Modi Ji’s vision of an LWE-free nation,” Shah posted on X.
The meeting, which is held at certain intervals, aims at fulfilling
the Central Government’s commitment to the development of left-wing
extremist-affected states as well as making a LWE-free nation.
A lot of success can be witnessed in the last few years in this
sector due to the joint efforts of the Centre and the States in cracking down
on Left Wing Extremism with an extreme fall in naxal incidents.
The Central Government, however, determined that unless the country
gets rid of the problem of Left Wing Extremism completely, the full development
of the country and the States affected by it is not possible.
Left-wing extremism has been a significant security challenge for
many years. Though primarily a State subject, the Ministry of Home Affairs
(MHA) has promulgated a ‘National Policy and Action Plan’ since 2015 to address
the Left Wing Extremism menace holistically and the progress and the situation
is being monitored rigorously and this Policy consists of a multi-pronged
approach.
The significant features of the policy are zero tolerance towards
violence coupled with a big push to developmental activities so that benefits
of development reach the poor and vulnerable in the affected areas.
Pursuant to the Policy, the Ministry of Home Affairs is supporting
the State Governments in Capacity Building and strengthening of Security
Apparatus by deployment of CAPF Battalions, provision of helicopters and UAVs
and sanction of India Reserve Battalions (IRBs) and Special India Reserve
Battalions (SIRBs).
Funds are also provided under the Modernization of Police Force
(MPF), Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme and Special Infrastructure
Scheme (SIS) for the modernization and training of State Police.
For the development of Left Wing Extremism-affected States, the Indian
Government has taken several developmental initiatives which include
sanctioning 17,600 kilometres of road.
To improve telecom connectivity in Left Wing Extremism-affected
districts, new mobile towers are being installed. For financial inclusion of
the people in Left Wing Extremism-affected districts, several post offices,
bank branches, ATMs and banking correspondents have been opened.
Special focus is also being given to the opening of Eklavya Model
Residential Schools (EMRS).
The fight against the Left Wing Extremism menace is now in a
crucial stage and the government is optimistic about reducing the menace to an
insignificant level at the earliest.
ANI
