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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.

Bold Stand

The Oxford Union, synonymous with intellectual freedom and robust debate, has long prided itself on tackling some of the world’s most contentious issues. Yet, this storied institution’s commitment to provocative discourse has led it into the minefield of insensitivity, blurring the line between intellectual exploration and political provocation. This tension came to the fore last week when a debate titled ‘This House Believes in the Independent State of Kashmir’ ignited a fervent response from the Indian diaspora in the UK.


A bold and vocal challenge was mounted by INSIGHT UK, a movement representing British Hindus and Indians. Their protest outside the Oxford Union decried the event’s featured speakers - Muzzammil Ayyub Thakur, president of the World Kashmir Freedom Movement, and Zafar Khan, chairman of JKLF – and their associations with extremist organizations.


The protest also reflected a bold assertion of India’s right to sovereignty and the diaspora’s growing influence in challenging narratives that have long been seen as the preserve of Western academia. The Indian diaspora organisations in the UK are directly confronting what they perceive as biased, outdated and provocative discourse in institutions like Oxford.


The protest highlighted that the debate on Kashmir transcends the technicalities of international law or historical disputes. It touches on deeply emotional issues: the safeguarding of sovereignty, the protection of minority rights and acknowledgment of historical injustices. INSIGHT UK’s letter to the Oxford Union articulated this sentiment which said that staging such a debate questioned the very essence of India’s territorial and moral integrity. The forced exodus of over 500,000 Kashmiri Hindus during the 1990s due to Islamic militancy remains a searing wound.


This episode serves as a wake-up call to institutions like the Oxford Union. The landscape of intellectual debate is shifting as global voices demand that discussions grounded in historical and contemporary conflicts acknowledge their real-world implications. The rise of the Indian diaspora’s assertiveness marks a new chapter where the echo of nationalist pride resonates beyond borders, challenging established narratives and insisting on greater sensitivity in discourse.


The question, then, is why the Union continues to offer a platform for speakers whose views are often not just controversial but actively harmful or divisive? The Union’s penchant for controversial topics may well continue, but it must now reckon with the fact that India’s voice, often muted or misrepresented in Western fora, is being amplified by a new generation of advocates who are not content to let their country’s narrative be shaped by external forces. This is a moment of transformation as the Indian diaspora demands that India’s sovereignty be recognised and respected on the global stage. The new India, emboldened by a new sense of unity and purpose, is not merely content to defend its territorial integrity but is now actively challenging the narratives that have long sought to undermine it.

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