Orissa to implement holistic plan to combat Naxal menace

Bhubaneswar, Apr 16 (UNI) The Orissa government will implement a holistic integrated five-year central plan in the Naxal-prone districts of the state shortly to counter the growing meance in the state.

State Home Secretary T K Mishra said under the plan an integrated approach would be made to accelerate the development process while strengthening the security measures in the state.

In the first phase, the plan would be implemented in the heavily Naxal-affected districts of Malkangiri and Rayagada, he added.

Mr Mishra also said the plan would be implemented in Sambalpur, Deogarh and Gajapati districts in the second phase.

The main objective of the plan was to fill up the gaps in the existing developmental projects through critical intervention and wean away the youths from the Naxal movements.

He said an Empower Committee, for the implementation of the special plan in the extremist-dominated areas, under the Chairmanship of state Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy, had been formed.

The other members of the Committee included Development Commissioner, Agriculture Promotion Commission, Home Secretary, Director General of Police and the Secretaries of SC/ST, Water Resources, Finance and Health.

The Committee is scheduled to meet tomorrow and finalise the plan. Mr Mishra said the Committee would submit a report to the Centre within a couple of days.

The Centre had identified 81 Naxal-prone districts in Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhtisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh for the successful implementation of the Rs 500 crore plan.

The Home Secretary said he would request the Centre to allocate Rs 25 crore per annum out of the Rs 100 crore stipulated for spending under the scheme every year.

Mr Mishra added the plan amount was likely to increase in the coming days depending upon the success of the scheme.

He further said the plan was also likely to be implemented in other Naxal-prone districts of Koraput, Nawarangpur, Ganjam, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar and Sundergarh identified by the Union Inter- Ministerial Committee in the coming days.

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