RAIPUR: Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday that a combination of the government’s security-centric strategy, infrastructure development, disruption of Maoist financial networks, and the surrender policy has produced positive results in the fight against Left-wing extremism (LWE).
Reiterating that the Naxal menace will be completely eradicated before March 31, Shah emphasised that the fight against Maoists must not be scattered. Chairing a high-level security meeting in Raipur, he directed Central and state agencies to maintain a seamless “grid” of intelligence and operations to ensure that Maoists squeezed out of one region cannot find sanctuary in neighbouring states.
Addressing the meeting, Shah said, “Chhattisgarh was once a stronghold of Naxal violence, but it has now become a symbol of development in the double-engine government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” He said youths of Chhattisgarh have been progressing in sports, forensic science, and technical education while preserving their culture and traditions.
He said Naxalism has pushed many generations into the darkness of poverty and illiteracy. “The double-engine government has been leaving no stone unturned to completely eradicate the menace of Naxalism from the country, and it has reached the verge of its end,” Shah said.
He added that Chhattisgarh has made remarkable progress on both the security and development fronts, emphasising equal developmental opportunities for people living in Naxal-affected areas. Shah also chaired a review meeting regarding various development works in Chhattisgarh, the release said. “In the Modi government, the focus is equal on security and opportunity,”
Shah stated, reiterating that people in Naxal-affected zones must have the same access to progress as the rest of the country.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma, the Union Home Secretary, the Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Special Secretary (Internal Security) in the Ministry of Home Affairs attended the meeting, a government statement said. Directors general of the CRPF, BSF, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and National Investigation Agency (NIA), as well as DGPs of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Telangana, and senior officers also attended.
CM Sai said the ‘double-engine’ government’s integrated strategy—combining precise security operations with infrastructure expansion and a crackdown on Maoist financial networks—is yielding visible results. Sai said Chhattisgarh is moving rapidly to achieve the Naxal-free target by March 31 under the leadership of PM Modi and guidance of Shah.
Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, comprising seven districts, shares borders with Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, and has long been considered the strongest bastion of Maoists. However, the region has witnessed intensified anti-Naxal operations over the past few years, considerably weakening the extremist movement.
Since January 2024, more than 500 Naxalites, including top cadres such as CPI (Maoist) general secretary Nambala Keshava Rao alias Basavaraju, have been killed in encounters in Chhattisgarh, while around 1,900 Naxalites were arrested and over 2,500 surrendered during the same period in the state, according to police.
Vijay Sharma stated, “Sunday meeting was the last crucial review amid the presence of top officials (Home/DGP) from different states in Raipur to decide future strategy.”
On Monday, Shah will attend the conclusion ceremony of the three-day cultural extravaganza, ‘Bastar Pandum Mahotsav’, at in Jagdalpur, south Chhattisgarh.