CRPF DG urges development

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CRPF director general K. Vijay Kumar said on Friday that security to the public and development should go hand in hand for effective eradication of Naxal menace in states like Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

It is very important to instil confidence in the people, he said on the sidelines of the passing out parade of the 406th batch of CRPF at the recruit training centre in Avadi.

“In a couple of years we can weaken the Naxal movement. For that, development is a must along with providing security to the public.

In many areas Centre and state governments together are going ahead with developmental work,” he said, adding that the development scheme at Saranda in Jharkhand was working well.

In October last year, Union minister for rural development, Jairam Ramesh and the state government had launched the Saranda development plan to implement government schemes in 56 villages after a massive military campaign wrested the area from the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) after nearly a decade.

The officer also pointed out that Sukma in Chhattisgarh, where Naxals had abducted then district collector Alex Paul Menon, was worst hit by Maoists.

Mr Vijay Kumar on Friday reviewed the passing out parade of 664 newly-recruited constables at the training centre. He asked the constables to maintain a high standard of discipline, training and devotion to duty throughout their career.

The constables, mostly from Maharashtra, have successfully completed 44 weeks of basic tactics and weapon training, foot and arms drill, handling and firing of small weapons, among others.

At the end of the training, each of them undertook field firing with mortar bombs, rifle grenades and hand grenades in addition to different small arms.