Making his stance vis-à-vis Maoist rebels clear ahead of the crucial February 9 meeting in Calcutta, that will fine-tune details of Operation Green Hunt, chief minister Shibu Soren today said the state has a strategy in place to deal with Naxalites, but it will be implemented only gradually from the grassroots level.

Soren said efforts of the state to find a solution to the Naxalite problem needed the support of the Centre. He was speaking at the chief ministers’ meet in New Delhi, convened by the Union home ministry on the issue of internal security.

The chief minister pointed out that the state was raising a battalion of ex-servicemen to carry out construction of roads, bridges and culverts in extremist-affected areas, particularly in the remote corners of the state.

Soren, in his address, said the number of police personnel had jumped to 56,000 from the 22,000 at the time of the creation of the state in 2000. He added that the process was on to fill up vacancies in the state constabulary by the end of the year.

Giving details of the steps taken by the state to beef up internal security, the chief minister said three India Reserve Battalions out of five sanctioned by the Centre had already been raised.

He said the state was ready to provide security to banks, commercial and public sector establishments.

“We have plans to create a special force to protect these establishments,” the chief minister claimed.

Soren said a tetra wireless system as well as a Dial 100 system was already in place in Ranchi and Jamshedpur to strengthen security. “We have a plan to set up similar systems in Dhanbad and Bokaro,” he added.

He also pointed out that a state of the art forensic science laboratory had been set up in the state capital to speed up investigation of crimes.

Soren claimed that an anti-terrorist squad would soon come up in the state.

Outlining his commitment to provide the best of communication gadgets to the police forces, the chief minister said the forces have been provided Polnet (satellite-based wide area network) and satellite phones.

Claiming remarkable achievements in the field of police modernisation, the chief minister said out of Rs 475 crore received from the Centre during 2008-09, Rs 461 crore had been utilised to strengthen the security system.

Date : 08/02/2010. News by Newsofap.com