The Maoists have been using few districts along the south-eastern border of Madhya Pradesh for safe passage and also for regrouping and building logistic support in the recent past, but the latest encounter between the Maoists and the police in the dense forest of Lanji sub-division in Balaghat district on February 1 is a departure from the prevailing scenario.
A senior state police officer, on condition of anonymity, said that last Wednesday’s cross fire in the Lanji forests, which did not result in any casualty on either side but led to the seizure of large quantities of arms and ammunition left behind by the fleeing Maoists, should give reason to those in authority in Madhya Pradesh to take a relook at their strategy aimed at tackling the Maoists in districts like Anuppur, Balaghat, Dindori, Mandla, Seoni, Shahdol, Sidhi, and Umaria, where development related works under the the Integrated Action Plan (IAP) for selected backward districts are being undertaken on priority. Those in the bureaucracy directly responsible for managing law and order and cadre management of the police force have continuously towed the line that development is a direct answer to the “Naxalite problem” and the state government has assertively taken the stand that there is a positive change in the “Naxalite-affected areas” where development related works are being taken up on priority.
This was even proclaimed through a government handout released to the press recently. While laying stress on development, state CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan has also asked the Centre on repeated occasions to include seven state districts into the Security Related Expenditure scheme meant for the Maoist-affected districts.
On being contacted, police officers posted in Madhya Pradesh districts, where Maoist movement has been recorded in recent months are unanimous in pointing out that development alone cannot tackle the menace. One of them pointed out that the latest encounter in Lanji sub-division of Balaghat district could be a prelude to the Maoists efforts to declare their supremacy in that area. To counter this, he said that the police force in the sensitive belt bordering Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra will have to be augmented with the creation of new posts and police stations and also deployment of additional police force but not without adequate incentives and counter-insurgency and jungle warfare training.