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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Gadchiroli SP declares Maoist menace ‘almost over’

Mumbai: In a resounding statement signalling a historic shift, Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police (SP) Neelotpal has declared the district, once the dark heart of the ‘Red Corridor,’ is on the verge of becoming completely free of the Naxal menace. The SP expressed absolute confidence in the complete eradication of the banned CPI (Maoist) presence, noting that the remaining cadres have dwindled to a mere handful. “There has been a sea change in the situation,” SP Neelotpal stated,...

Gadchiroli SP declares Maoist menace ‘almost over’

Mumbai: In a resounding statement signalling a historic shift, Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police (SP) Neelotpal has declared the district, once the dark heart of the ‘Red Corridor,’ is on the verge of becoming completely free of the Naxal menace. The SP expressed absolute confidence in the complete eradication of the banned CPI (Maoist) presence, noting that the remaining cadres have dwindled to a mere handful. “There has been a sea change in the situation,” SP Neelotpal stated, highlighting the dramatic turnaround. He revealed that from approximately 100 Maoist cadres on record in January 2024, the number has plummeted to barely 10 individuals whose movements are now confined to a very small pocket of the Bhamragad sub-division in South Gadchiroli, near the Chhattisgarh border. “North Gadchiroli is now free of Maoism. The Maoists have to surrender and join the mainstream or face police action... there is no other option.” The SP attributes this success to a meticulously executed multi-pronged strategy encompassing intensified anti-Maoist operations, a robust Civic Action Programme, and the effective utilisation of Maharashtra’s attractive surrender-cum-rehabilitation policy. The Gadchiroli Police, especially the elite C-60 commandos, have achieved significant operational milestones. In the last three years alone, they have neutralised 43 hardcore Maoists and achieved a 100 per cent success rate in operations without police casualties for nearly five years. SP Neelotpal highlighted that the security forces have aggressively moved to close the “security vacuum,” which was once an estimated 3,000 square kilometres of unpoliced territory used by Maoists for training and transit. The establishment of eight new police camps/Forward Operating Bases (FoBs) since January 2023, including in the remote Abujhmad foothills, has been crucial in securing these areas permanently. Winning Hearts, Minds The Civic Action Programme has been deemed a “game changer” by the SP. Through schemes like ‘Police Dadalora Khidaki’ and ‘Project Udaan’, the police have transformed remote outposts into service delivery centres, providing essential government services and employment opportunities. This sustained outreach has successfully countered Maoist propaganda and, most critically, resulted in zero Maoist recruitment from Gadchiroli for the last few years. Surrender Wave The state’s progressive rehabilitation policy has seen a massive influx of surrenders. “One sentiment is common among all the surrendered cadres: that the movement has ended, it has lost public support, and without public support, no movement can sustain,” the SP noted. The surrender of key figures, notably that of Mallojula Venugopal Rao alias ‘Bhupathi,’ a CPI (Maoist) Politburo member, and his wife Sangeeta, was a “landmark development” that triggered a surrender wave. Since June 2024, over 126 Maoists have surrendered. The rehabilitation program offers land, housing under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, and employment. Surrendered cadres are receiving skill training and are successfully transitioning into normal life, with around 70 already employed in the local Lloyds plant. A District Reborn The transformation of Gadchiroli is now moving beyond security concerns. With the decline of extremism, the district is rapidly moving towards development and normalcy. The implementation of development schemes, round-the-clock electricity, water supply, mobile towers, and new infrastructure like roads and bridges is being given top priority. He concludes that the police’s focus is now shifting from an anti-Maoist offensive to routine law-and-order policing, addressing new challenges like industrialisation, theft, and traffic management. With the Maoist movement in “complete disarray” and major strongholds like the Maharashtra-Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh (MMC) Special Zone collapsing, the SP is highly optimistic. Gadchiroli is not just getting rid of the Naxal menace; it is embracing its future as a developing, peaceful district, well on track to meet the central government’s goal of eradicating Naxalism by March 31, 2026.

Akhilesh wants 12 seats from MVA, points to Bhiwandi

Updated: Oct 21, 2024

Akhilesh wants 12 seats from MVA, points to Bhiwandi

Dhule: The Samajwadi Party (SP) has asked for 12 seats as part of the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra, party chief Akhilesh Singh Yadav said on Saturday, even as the alliance is yet to declare its seat-sharing arrangement.


Talking to reporters in north Maharashtra’s Dhule district, Yadav said his party has declared candidates for five seats.


Yadav said his party is the one that is satisfied with a few seats. “We have asked for 12 seats (as part of the MVA),” he said, adding that the SP has shared details of the seats where it has a strong presence.

The SP’s assertion has come at a time when the MVA constituents are in a stalemate over seat-sharing.

On Saturday, the SP declared the candidature of Irshad Jahagirdar from Dhule city, making him the fifth candidate of the party so far.


The party on Friday declared sitting MLA Rais Shaikh’s candidature from Bhiwandi East, Riyaz Azmi from Bhiwandi West and Shaan-E-Hind from Malegaon Central. The SP’s state president, Abu Asim Azmi, is a sitting MLA from the Shivajinagar-Mankhurd seat.


Yadav addressed rallies in Malegaon on Friday and Dhule on Saturday.


Talking to PTI, Abu Azmi said, “We have declared five candidates so that they (MVA) know that we are strong here, or else they will tell us in the meeting that your candidate is not very strong. We have shown that we are asking for seats where we are strong.”


He said Congress has not won the Bhiwandi East seat since 1999. “Only we will win this seat. They should not regret it like Haryana later (if the MVA fields a candidate from the seat),” he said.


Azmi said MVA leaders have spoken to him and assured him about seats.


Founded by Mulayam Singh Yadav, the SP is a constituent of the opposition’s INDIA bloc at the national level. The Peasants and Workers Party (PWP)and the left parties are also part of the MVA.


In Maharashtra, three parties - Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP (SP) -- which are also part of the INDIA bloc, are contesting the elections as part of the MVA alliance.


The assembly elections in Maharashtra will be held on November 20.


Maharashtra poll results will decide future of country: Akhilesh Yadav

“Maharashtra polls is the election that will change the politics of the country. This is a historic election. After the poll results, the BJP government will go and when the government in Maharashtra goes the (Union) government in Delhi will also collapse.” he asserted.


“When the (Union) government in Delhi goes, our CM (Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath) who takes a bulldozer with him will also go,” he said.


He urged his supporters to ensure defeat of the BJP and its allies in Maharashtra so that it can change the government in Uttar Pradesh.

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