Ex-IPS officers hail Centre’s efforts in combating Maoist violence
Fourteen former IPS officers issued a statement on Thursday praising the Union Government’s efforts in combating Maoist violence in the country.
The statement, issued under the banner “Track The Truth”, the group credited the success to “decisive political will and implementation of a clearly delineated path of development, welfare and intelligence-led operations”.
They also said the PM’s various central schemes had been a game changer in Maoist areas even as the “hands-on and persuasive style of working” of Home Minister Amit Shah had been a motivating factor.
The IPS officers include former UP DGPs OP Singh and Vikram Singh, former J&K DG SP Vaid, former Maharashtra DG D Shivanandan, former Madhya Pradesh DG SK Raut, former Bihar DGP DN Gautam and other IPS officers belonging to 1983, 1984 and 1986 batches.
“The past year is a milestone in containing India’s decades-old Maoist insurgency… the number of Maoist-affected police stations has reduced significantly in the past decade from almost 450 to about 200 and districts from about 100 to 50,” the statement said.
It said it was clear that the PM’s vision in extending social welfare initiatives such as PM Kisan, PM Ujjwala, PM Awas, Ayushmann Bharat, PM Garib Kalyan and DBT to hitherto neglected regions were game-changing in Maoist-affected areas as well.
It said the distribution of land titles to tribals and quality education to tribal youth at Eklavya Model Residential Schools had raised hopes and aspirations, weaning youth away from Maoists.
“Coupled with a conducive and clear policy environment, sustained inter-agency and inter-state coordination by the Union Home Minister’s hands-on and persuasive style of working must have been a key motivating factor,” the statement said.
“The decimation of the Maoist terrorist movement was a matter of time, given that its leadership is ageing fast, recruitment has reduced significantly and security forces are spreading deeper into Maoist strongholds. In our collective assessment, the CPI Maoist’s military strategy of ‘protracted people’s war’ through an ‘armed liberation struggle’ appears to have failed,” the statement added.
