Maoists, terrorism continue to persist in the country: PM

New Delhi, Feb 1 (PTI) Warning that serious challengesposed by naxal violence, cross-border terrorism and religiousfundamentalism continue to persist, Prime Minister ManmohanSingh today said there is need for greater coordination andresponses from the states to effectively deal with them.

Inaugurating the conference of chief ministers'' oninternal security, Singh said there can be no let up in thegovernment''s efforts in the fight against terrorism andcommunal violence.

"...we all need to be conscious of the fact that seriouschallenges and threats - primarily from left wing extremism,cross border terrorism, religious fundamentalism and ethnicviolence - still persist," he said.

The Prime Minister said as far as the left wing extremismwas concerned, 2010 saw a decrease over the previous year inthe number of incidents and causalities of security forces,though the number of causalities among civilians increased.

"Chhattisgarh, Bihar, West Bengal and Jharkhand continueto be a cause for concern in view of the level of violence.

The problems in Orissa and Maharashtra are also quiteserious," he said.

Asking the chief ministers to consider increasing thenumber of joint operations by state police forces with theassistance of central forces, Singh said in the fight againstthe Maoists, there is a need to have a greater coordination ofresponses and resources between the central and state forces.

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