The Orissa government will set up a State Industrial Security Force in line with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to combat the threat to different mining and industrial establishments in the state from naxalites in the wake of recent attack by the red ultras on the mines of public sector national Aluminium Company (Nalco) in Koraput district.
According to sources, the new force will be operationalised as soon as necessary legislation is passed in the assembly after a new government is installed following the ongoing assembly elections in the state.
This force will mostly look after the security aspects in different private and public industrial establishments in the state which are not in the purview of CISF.
The proposal to raise this force was discussed in a meeting of state chief secretary Ajit Tripathy and home secretary AP Padhi with senior officials of Union mines and home ministry at New Delhi yesterday. The meeting was convened by Union mines secretary, Santha Sheela Nayar to review the security situation in all vulnerable mines in Orissa, particularly in the context of attack on Nalco mines.
The chairman cum managing director of Nalco, CR Pradhan and representatives of Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) also attended the meeting.
Most of the large mines in Orissa are in the target of the naxalites who are eying to lay their hands on the explosives stored there for use in mining activity. For safeguard of lives and property in these mines, it was decided to prepare a list of all the explosives stored in the magazines houses of different mining companies in the state. Besides, the design of magazine houses would be standardized for their better protection, sources said.
Among other things, the meeting resolved that regular coordination meetings should be held among the officials of the state and Central government and industries operating in vulnerable areas for review and sharing of information on naxalite threat to mining properties. It also discussed about strengthening the security arrangement in the route of transport of explosives and proper lighting of the mines and better coordination between the state police and CISF, particularly in respect of intelligence reports on movement of ultra groups.