FULL FORCE AHEAD

If vishwas, vikas aur suraksha (trust, development and safety) were the cornerstones of the previous Congress government’s strategy in dealing with left-wing extremism (LWE) in Chhattisgarh, all-out war is what the state’s new double-engine sarkar has declared now.

- Rahul Noronha

The Centre’s desire to deliver a final blow to end Maoist-related violence in the country before the general election may have been a tad too ambitious, which is why, at a meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired on January 21 in Raipur, with new chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai, the state DGP and the CRPF DG in attendance, he set a target of three years to weed out the rebels in the state. But there are no doubts that the pursuit of the objective—taking apart the ecosystem supporting Maoism, including financing—will be relentless if the current spate of encounters, arrests and surrenders is anything to go by. The MHA has also said it will be flexible in the allotment of funds and their use.