Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said that security forces have been conducting “offensive operations” against Naxals rather than being on the defensive and have had significant success lately.
Speaking to Chief Ministers and other high-ranking officials from the Naxal-affected states, Shah claimed that the better security conditions had resulted in high voter turnout in the Maoist-affected region, reaching up to 70% in the most recent Lok Sabha elections. There was zero polling in the region previously.
The critical meeting took place days after the security forces killed 31 ultras in the Chhattisgarh forests in one of the most effective operations against them in recent history. The agenda included discussions of anti-Naxal operations and development measures implemented in the impacted areas.
“Security forces are now carrying out offensive operations instead of defensive operations earlier,” Shah said.
He called the Naxals the “biggest hurdle” to progress, claiming they had violated nearly eight crore people’s human rights and prevented them from accessing opportunities for basic welfare and development. States including Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telangana, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh have been affected by the Naxal menace.
The Modi government’s policy has resulted in a 72% decrease in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) violence and an 86% decrease in deaths in 2023 compared to 2010. Officials indicated that the Naxals are currently engaged in their last battle.
Senior officials from the Centre, states, and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) attended the conference, as did Union Ministers who are directly involved in giving development support to the states affected by LWE.
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