Centre not going to root of naxalite problem,says C'garh CM

New Delhi, Nov 10 (UNI) Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh feels a long term and short term integrated plan involving the affected States needs to be drawn up by the Centre to tackle the naxalite menace in the country, but regretted no such approach has been adopted so far.

''There is no attempt so far to go into the roots of the disease and treat it,'' Dr Singh said, adding that what the Union Government has been doing so far in the name of tackling the naxalite problem ''amounts to doing a symptomatic treatment of the disease.'' An integrated Action Plan should not only provide for Central assistance to forestall naxalite attacks but also talk of maintaining peace in the naxalite-affected areas, the Chief Minister said in an informal chat with a visiting group of journalists from Delhi in Raipur on Wednesday.

Conceding that the Union Government had set up a Joint Desk to deal with the naxalite problem, he, however, said the Centre should first prepare a road map of what it proposed to do to make a dent on the problem. ''We have submitted an Action Plan in this regard to the Centre,'' Dr Singh said.

Noting that ever since the naxalite movement had started in Chhattisgarh 25 years ago, he said it was for the first time that the people in the tribal region had demonstrated a will power and confidence that the State Govenment would provide them security.

''Realisation had gradually dawned on them that they could achieve nothing from the naxalites. They understood that naxalites had no faith in land reforms and only believed in buring down schools and hospitals,destroying roads and not allowing the tribals to collect the tendu leaf and sal seds for their living,'' he said, adding that the tribals were now waging a war against naxalites in the hope that their future generations at least would live in peace.

Claiming that Chhattisgarh govenment's policy towards naxalites had so far been successful, Dr Singh asserted that even if the Government ''succeeded 10 per cent in this regard, it would at least help to generate confidence among the tribals and lead to peace.'' MORE UNI YS VD DS1630