Centre assures all help to Chhattisgarh to tackle Naxalism

The Centre today assured all assistance to the Chhattisgarh government to deal with Naxalism, which continue to pose a threat to several states.
Home Minister Rajnah Singh gave the assurance to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh at a meeting, which was attended by senior officers of the central and state governments, a statement said.
The two leaders noted that the declining trend of left- wing extremism continues across the country.
Naxalism-related incidents have dropped by 21 per cent as compared to the corresponding period last year. Naxalites are under pressure with ever shrinking influence, both in terms of geographical spread and public support, they noted.

Security and development-related measures required to achieve the same were discussed, the statement said.
The central government provides security-related assistance to the state which includes provision for central armed police forces personnel, helicopters, UAVs among others.

In addition, 11 India Reserve battalions and two Special India Reserve battalions have been sanctioned to the state.
Funds have also been provided for fortification of 75 police stations and capacity building of special forces under the Special Infrastructure Scheme.
As part of the multi-pronged strategy to deal with Naxalites, the central government gives equal focus to development measures to bring Maoists-affected districts on par with other areas.

The central government has approved a special central assistance scheme for 35 worst-affected LWE districts with an annual outlay of Rs 1000 crore.
Important development schemes include the Road Requirement Plan PhaseI under which Chhattisgarh was sanctioned 1,988 km of road out of which 1,351 km have been completed.
Under the newly launched RRP-II, Chhattisgarh has been sanctioned 891 km of road. To improve mobile connectivity, 519 mobile towers have been installed in Phase-I. Another 1028 towers are being planned in Phase-II of the project.