Letters: Guns and butter

UPA chief Sonia Gandhi’s statement through the party mouthpiece Sandesh is important. By highlighting the need for development in Naxal-affected areas, she has made it clear that Naxalism is a response to lack of development, and not merely a law-and-order issue.

This is an important change in emphasis since the official view is quite the opposite. Having defined the problem, the next challenge is how to tackle it. State governments alone can deal with development, the Centre cannot. Even the special aid it gives can only be used by the states. But the states lack the administrative capacity to provide development. If they had the capacity, they would have been able to deal with law and order, and Naxalism would not be of the size it is today. This is a Catch 22 situation.

Ganesh S, New Delhi