BHUBANESWAR: Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Friday asserted that India will become free of Maoist violence by March 31, declaring that security forces will defeat attempts to create a ‘red corridor from Tirupati to Pashupati’.
Shah was speaking at the 57th Raising Day celebrations of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at the Kharavela Regional Training Centre in Mundali near Cuttack.
Addressing CISF personnel and trainees at the event, Shah said the force has transformed significantly since its inception and has successfully taken on multiple challenges while maintaining the highest standards of professionalism and courage.
“In 56 years, the CISF has not only fulfilled its original purpose but has also transformed itself by facing all kinds of challenges,” Shah said, expressing gratitude to all personnel of the force for their service to the nation.
Emphasising the growing importance of industrial and infrastructure security in India’s development journey, the Union Home Minister said the CISF would be entrusted with the responsibility of securing all ports across the country in the future. After taking over port security, the CISF will also secure ports along the country’s vast maritime border.
“Four years ago, we had asked the CISF to develop a model in hybrid mode and provide security to private industrial groups as well. The model has now been prepared with the most modern equipment. In the coming days, the CISF will also provide security to private industrial groups in hybrid mode,” he said. Shah also made a strong pitch for the government’s campaign against Left-wing extremism.
“Today, I want to assure the nation that the country will be Maoist-free by March 31. Our forces will defeat those who dream of building a red corridor from Tirupati to Pashupati,” he said. Eliminating Naxalism would be a major achievement for the country’s security forces under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added. The prime minister’s goal is to make India a developed nation by 2047 and the third-largest economy by 2027, and the CISF is playing the role of a catalyst in achieving these goals, Shah said.
The Home minister also laid the foundation stone for three residential complexes of the CISF at Kamrup, Nashik and Sehore to be built at a cost of `890 crore. He also virtually inaugurated two residential complexes at Rajarhat and Delhi from Mundali.
Earlier, he laid a wreath at the Braveheart Memorial at the training centre, paying tribute to CISF personnel who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty. The ceremony was attended by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and deputy chief ministers KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida.