ROURKELA: In the wake of noticeable drop in Maoist activities along Odisha-Jharkhand border, Rourkela police, in a significant move, on Friday reopened the Jareikela police outpost located on the extreme end of Sundargarh district to ensure police presence at the remote pocket.
Incidentally, the Jareikela outpost of Bisra police station located 100 meters away from Jharkhand’s Saranda forest border, was closed in early 2011 shortly after the killing of a police constable Laxman Kishan.
Then, Naxalism in Saranda forest was at its peak and presence of security forces was thin leading to closure of the Jareikela outpost and a couple of other Odisha police outposts on other border regions amid increased threat perception.
Incidentally, Jareikela village partly falls in Odisha where the Jareikela outpost is located and partly in Jharkhand where Jharkhand’s Jareikela police station exists along with a company of CRPF.
A senior police officer said Maoist activities have reduced in the region and due to the presence of CRPF camp at a distance of 100 metres inside Jharkhand, the decision was taken to reopen the Jareikela outpost which could be later upgraded into a police station.
While reopening the outpost at a ceremony, Rourkela-based IG of Police (Western Range) RK Sharma, accompanied by Rourkela SP Anirudh Singh, said it would help in checking inter-State crimes, including wood smuggling, and gathering intelligence about Left-Wing Extremists.
Singh said tribal forest dwellers on Odisha side of the border would not have to travel 15 km to Bisra police station to file complaints. They would now get police help at Jareikela outpost.
The ceremony was among others attended by Rourkela Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Sanjeet Kumar, revenue officials and elected members of Panchayatiraj Institutions.
Meanwhile, a new building of the Anti-Naxal Cell at Rourkela was also inaugurated on Friday to monitor anti-Maoist operation.