Unified command to curb Naxal violence

Acknowledging the deteriorating law and order situation in the Naxal-affected states and the failure of successive state governments and the central governments in curbing the upsurge in violence, the government today indicated that it favoured the formation of a unified command comprising central and state law enforcement agencies to tackle the naxalite problem.

"The Centre encourages states to form unified commands of their own, under the respective chief ministers, comprising state police and central paramilitary forces to deal with the Naxal menace," said Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil.

"We have provided state police with additional forces and asked them to improve their intelligence network," he said.

The Centre had provided 23 battalions of para-military forces to tackle Naxal violence in four-five affected states, Patil said. Sufficient troop deployment in the naxal-affected regions prevented any major disruption in the first phase of Assembly polls on February 3, he added.

"We made available forces to the Election Commission who deployed them in the states and, judging by the polling percentages, it has been a satisfactory exercise," he said.

The home minister, however, said a long-term solution to the Naxal menace had to be found on several fronts.

While the home minister made the right noises the head-on collision course that the Andhra Pradesh government and the naxals are on despite a good start with an offer for talks, loomed large over the minister.

Referring to the situation in the state, Patil said Chief Minister YS Rajasekhar Reddy told him that it had not pulled out of talks but had only asked the Naxals not to move around with arms.

The situation became worse after the Andhra government first invited naxal groups for talks and later started targetting them through the elite commando unit. Naxal leaders alleged that the government was bent on wiping out the Naxal leadership through encounters.

Acknowledging the problem, the home minister also asked forces not to indulge in extra-judicial killings. "There should not be any proxy encounters and an attempt should be made to convince the naxals to come into the national mainstream," he said.

The home minister said the Centre was following a two-pronged strategy of not just asking the naxals to come to the negotiating table but also to address the causes of rising naxalism.

"One has to seek the causes for naxal violence before looking for remedies," Patil said citing economic disparities, social injustice and infrastructure imbalances as factors which may be causing such violence.

"There are a section of extremists who are driven by ideological convictions and believe that democracy cannot provide solutions to their problems," he said, adding others may be disgruntled elements who seek an outlet in violence.

"We have provided Rs 35 crore per district to the affected states for infrastructure development and various schemes for employment generation," he said.

The Centre has also asked the planning commission for special programmes for the accelerated development of these areas, he added.