BHUBANESWAR: Senior security advisor in Union Home Ministry K Vijay Kumar on Saturday said the number of Maoists in Malkangiri district has drastically come down due to regular combing operations by Central forces and Odisha Police.
Talking to mediapersons after meeting Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the Secretariat here, Kumar said the joint operation carried out by Odisha Police and Grey Hound squad of Andhra Pradesh was a good sign of close coordination between the two neighbouring States.
About the allegations of Maoists, Kumar said whenever our forces are successful in anti-Maoist operations, they usually come up with a release to the media maintaining that the operations were stage-managed and deliberate encounter.
Replying to the construction of Gurupriya bridge in the cut-off area of Chitrakonda block in Malkangiri district which has been inordinately delayed, Kumar said the project has been going on for quite some time. As there has been a cost escalation, the State Government is having regular correspondence with the Centre demanding more financial assistance for timely completion of the bridge.