Anti-talk Ulfa faction under pressure to be violent: Gogoi

The anti-talk faction of Ulfa militants led by Paresh Baruah has been under pressure from "foreign forces" to carry out subversive activities and prove its relevance, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said Saturday.

Gogoi also termed the recent violence sponsored by the anti-talk faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam (Ulfa) - the grenade blasts in Lakhimpur and Karbi Anglong districts earlier this week - as the outfit's desperate attempt to prove its existence.

The chief minister asserted that the law and order situation in the state had improved considerably.

"There has been tremendous pressure on the outfit's commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah from 'foreign forces', who shelter and help these outfits. These forces are the enemy of welfare and development and they have been pressing the outfit into carrying out subversive activities," Gogoi said while interacting with the media Saturday.

The chief minister, however, did not specify who these 'foreign forces' were, and only said that there were several such 'forces' operating from more than one country.

Justifying his claims about the improved law and order situation, Gogoi explained that while the civilian casualties due to insurgency in Assam was 400 in 2001, it was a mere 10 or 12 this year.

"However, I have taken serious note of the violence and taken steps to avoid such incidents in future. Instructions have already been given to the deputy commissioners and superintendents of police in all districts to take necessary steps in this regard," he said.

Gogoi said the government would deal with the security issues by taking the route of further development: "I believe development and security concerns are two sides of the same coin. We are going to bring in development in a big way. It is only through development that we can solve the security issues," Gogoi said.

"We are going to create employment opportunities in the state in a big way. We are already in touch with the CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) and the FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry) for this. Efforts are also on to set up employment generation parks in some districts like Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia and others," Gogoi said, adding that this will help tackle security-related issues as well.

The chief minister also said that the government had initiated steps to reform and modernise the police force and a Task Force would be set up within one month in this regard.

"We have recruited 12,000 police personnel last year. This year also, plans are on to recruit about 8,000 police personnel," he said.