Latest news with #LWE-affected
Time of India
4 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
160-km Kothagudem–Kirandul line cleared: Chhattisgarh red corridor to get first rail link
The core Left-wing Extremism affected areas of Chhattisgarh will finally get a rail link with the Indian railways finalising the contours of 160-km line from Kothagudem in Telangana to Kirandul in Chhattisgarh. The rail line will connect Naxal-affected 5454districts of Sukma, Dantewada and Bijapur. These areas were not connected with railways so far. Indian Railways has initiated the final location survey foe the line. About 9.5 kms of the line is planned in Telangana, 12.32 kms and 138.51 kms in Chhattisgarh. The line has been planned to cross Pandurangapuram, Ramachandruni Peta, Adavi Ramavaram, Gangrel, Golapalli, Chintalnar, Nilampalli, Tamodi and ends at Kirandul in Dantewada district. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Villas For Sale in Dubai Might Surprise You Dubai villas | search ads Get Deals Undo This first rail connectivity for Bastar region will help in furthering the government's efforts to take development to core LWE-affected areas as it carries out anti-Naxal operations . The Centre plans to make Chhattisgarh Naxal-free by March 2026. The railways has initiated the final location survey using LiDAR technology, a remote sensing method. However, this survey is facing resistance from the villagers. Satish Kumar, chairman and CEO of Railway Board, had written to Chhattisgarh chief secretary Amitabh Jain to ensure assistance to surveyors. Live Events
The Hindu
23-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Among slain Maoists in Chhattisgarh since 2024, one-third were women, show data
More than one-third of alleged Maoist cadres killed since 2024 in security operations with police and other security forces in Chhattisgarh were women, data show. There has been a sharp increase in the percentage of women Maoist cadres being killed in security operations in the years 2024 and 2025, compared to the previous years, coinciding with increase in the number of operations amid the Ministry of Home Affairs' (MHA's) call to end Maoism by March 2026. In the year 2024, the number of Maoists killed in Chhattisgarh stood at 217, out of which 74 were women, while till June 20 this year, out of 195 Maoists killed, 82 were women. In the years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023, the number of Maoists killed were 65, 40, 51, 30 and 20 respectively, out of which the number of women killed in the respective years stood at 17, 7, 13, 9 and 5. 'Bal Dastas' According to the MHA, Maoists have formed 'Bal Dastas' comprising young children in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. 'The idea is to brainwash and indoctrinate young children to Maoist ideology. Most parents do not want to part with their children. But faced with coercion and threats, many poor Adivasi parents prefer to part with the girlchild. This inhuman practice by Maoists is the reason behind large number of young girls/women being present among the Maoist cadres,' the MHA said on its website. Also read | Is this the endgame for the Maoists? The Ministry added that women were also pushed to the forefront of engagements with the security forces. 'In spite of the Maoists professing disapproval of 'patriarchy', the number of women in top echelons of their leadership like the PB [Polit Bureau] and CC [central committee] are negligible,' the MHA said. The Ministry data show that since 2019, 725 civilians have been killed 'by Left Wing Extremism [LWE]' and during the same period there have been 263 incidents of attack on 'economic infrastructure' in LWE-affected States. 'The Maoists wish to keep the population in their strongholds cut-off from the mainstream milieu. Schools are attacked because education promotes a spirit of enquiry among the local population and equips children with skills for alternative sources of livelihood. These developments are looked upon by the Maoists as potential threats to their very existence and their outdated ideology,' the Ministry said. P. Sundarraj, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range), said that in the earlier years, women and young girls — particularly from the tribal and rural areas of the Bastar region — were often coerced or misled into joining Maoist organisations. 'However, once inducted, these women cadres were largely used as foot soldiers and human shields by the Maoist leadership. Over time, they were subjected to various forms of exploitation, neglect, and physical and emotional hardship. We remain firmly committed to addressing this issue with both sensitivity and determination. Our priority continues to be the promotion of voluntary surrender through humane, gender-sensitive rehabilitation policies that offer access to education, employment, healthcare, and social reintegration,' the IG said.
Indian Express
20-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Why the Centre wants QR codes on roads built under PM Gram Sadak Yojana
Earlier this month, the Union Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) asked states to attach QR codes on all maintenance information display boards for roads built under the Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). The first phase of the PMGSY was launched on December 25, 2000, by the then NDA government headed by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to improve rural infrastructure through road construction. The second phase was launched in 2013. Another component, called the Road Connectivity Project for Left Wing Extremism Affected Areas (RCPLWEA), was launched in 2016 for the construction of rural roads in LWE-affected areas. The third phase was launched in 2019. On September 11, 2024, the Central government approved phase IV to provide all-weather road connectivity to 25,000 unconnected habitations of population size 500+ in plains, 250+ in northeastern and hill states/UTs, special category areas (Tribal Schedule V, Aspirational Districts/Blocks, Desert areas) and 100+ in LWE-affected areas (notified by the Ministry of Home Affairs in nine states), as per Census 2011. Starting as a totally Centrally Sponsored Scheme, the funding pattern was modified from 2015-16 to 60:40 between the Centre and states (except for northeastern and Himalayan states). A total of 62,500 km of road length is proposed to be constructed for Rs 70,125 crore from 2024-25 to 2028-29. Since the scheme was launched, a total road length of 8,36,850 km has been sanctioned, of which 7,81,209 km has been completed, as per information available on the scheme dashboard. What has the government planned now? The National Rural Infrastructure Development Agency (NRIDA), which comes under the MoRD and provides technical support for implementing the PMGSY, has written to all states about QR codes. The aim is to get public feedback about the quality and maintenance of roads. Under the PMGSY, all roads after the completion of construction are maintained by the contractor for five years. This is done using a mobile-cum-web-based e-MARG (electronic Maintenance of Rural Roads) system. It is an e-governance solution for managing and monitoring rural road maintenance. The contractor carries out the routine maintenance and submits bills on eMARG. The field engineering staff carry out Routine Inspection (RI) to verify the maintenance by the contractor, and based on geo-tagged photographs captured during RI, the Performance Evaluation (PE) is done based on 12 parameters of Routine Maintenance activities, according to the NRIDA. As a whole, maintenance comes under the ambit of state governments, with rural roads being a state subject. The NRIDA also deploys its National Level Monitors (NLMs) to check the construction quality of roads. The NLMs reports have flagged substandard works under the PMGSY in the past. However, there was no existing mechanism to capture people's feedback about the quality of maintenance. How will the new system work? To enable easy sharing of feedback, a utility has been created in eMARG. A QR code can be generated for each road, to be displayed on the maintenance information display board on the road. The board can contain instructions for registering feedback in English and the local language. 'Any road user/public can scan the QR code using a mobile phone and will get all details of the road. Users can click photographs on the road and can flag any maintenance related issue in the feedback window,' according to the NRIDA. The citizens' feedback photos will be integrated with the relevant Routine Inspection. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning will be employed to analyse these photographs to advise on Performance Evaluation (PE) marks. All programs implementing units, while giving PE marks, shall be responsible for checking these photos. 'This way not only will the public participate in ensuring maintenance on the roads but, the photographs clicked by the users will also help the engineering staff to do a realistic performance evaluation. Thus, eMARG will be a more transparent system for ensuring Routine Maintenance for 5 years,' states the NRIDA letter sent to all additional chief secretaries/principal secretaries/secretaries in-charge of the PMGSY of all states and Union Territories on June 2. According to officials, trials were carried out in various states, including a pilot project in Himachal Pradesh. After this, the new facility was made fully functional.
Time of India
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Nearly 3 decades on, Bastar out of home ministry's Red list
RAIPUR: Once synonymous with the rise of Maoist insurgency, Bastar, along with Kondagaon, have been removed from the list of Left Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected districts by Union home ministry, marking a turning point in Chhattisgarh's mission against Naxalism. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now This comes a week after Maoist general secretary Basavaraju was gunned down, along with 27 other Maoists, in neighbouring Narayanpur district. Bastar had been on the LWE-affected districts' list for at least 25 years. Bastar and Kondagaon have now been sub-categorised as 'districts of legacy and thrust', which means Maoist activities have come down to a great extent. Bastar range IG P Sundarraj told TOI, "Kondagaon and Bastar are among 30 districts across the country now brought under 'districts of legacy and thrust' category. This removes them from the category of LWE-affected regions but they need development and vigilance on the operational front. " Other districts of Bastar division - Sukma, Bijapur, Narayanpur and Kanker - are still categorised as 'most affected LWE districts' while Dantewada features among 'other LWE districts'. Dhamtari, Kabirdham, Khairagarh-Chhuikhadan-Gandai and Rajnandgaon have also been sub-categorised under 'legacy and thrust districts'. Bastar and Kondagaon were once counted among the hotbeds of Maoist insurgency, but incidents of violence have dropped significantly in recent years. The lone encounter in Kondagaon in nearly five years was on April 16 when two senior Maoist commanders were gunned districts saw good voting in the 2023 assembly polls - Bastar 84.6% and Kondagaon 81.7%. In the recent notification issued by MHA, 18 districts in the country are identified as 'LWE-affected', 'other LWE-affected' or 'districts of concern', including six in Chhattisgarh. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "Due to effective anti-Naxal operations in recent months, we have seen remarkably positive outcomes in the LWE scenario in Bastar Range. Categorisation of Kondagaon and Bastar as 'districts of legacy' is a significant step closer to being 'Maoist-free'. All our efforts would now be focused on ensuring that Naxal menace is totally eliminated in Bastar Range," Sundarraj said.
News18
22-05-2025
- Politics
- News18
CoBRA Commando, Naxal Killed During Anti-Maoist Operation In Chhattisgarh
Last Updated: An IAF helicopter has been pressed into service to evacuate the injured, officials said. A CoBRA commando of the CRPF and a Naxalite were killed during an anti-Maoist operation in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district on Thursday, officials said. According to the officials, the operation is ongoing in the Tumrel village area of the district. The operation is being led by the 210th battalion of CRPF's CoBRA and has troops from Chhattisgarh Police DRG and STF. A CoBRA commando has also been injured, they said. An IAF helicopter has been pressed into service to evacuate the injured, officials said. The Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) is an elite jungle warfare unit within the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). It plays a key role in leading operations in states affected by Left Wing Extremism. The security forces are undertaking continuous operations in the LWE-affected states as part of the Union government's declaration to end the menace in the country by March next year. The Bastar region in Chhattisgarh remains their core area of operation. At least 27 Naxalites, including their top commander Nambala Keshav Rao (70) alias Basavaraju, the general secretary of the outlawed CPI (Maoist), were killed in an encounter with the District Reserve Guard (DRG) of Chhattisgarh Police in the forests along the Narayanpur-Bijapur border on Wednesday. First Published: May 22, 2025, 19:34 IST
