Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh) : Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make a visit to the poll-bound Chhattisgarh today when he will address a 'Parivartan Mahasankalp' rally as part of the closing ceremony of BJP's two Parivartan Yatras in Bilaspur here. The public meeting is being held at the Science College grounds here at 2 pm.
The police put together a massive security cover at the venue of the Prime Minister's programme. A three-kilometre radius area has been declared a no-flying zone and over 1,500 security personnel belonging to the police force, SPGM NSG and other forces will form part of the security machinery.
The leaders and cadres of the Bharathiya Janata Party (BJP) are in an upbeat mood ahead of PM Modi's visit, the third one to the Congress-ruled state. As the state assembly elections are fast approaching, BJP leaders are confident of making significant gains in the 2023 polls. BJP state chief Arun Sao told reporters that necessary arrangements have been made to make the PM's public meeting a success.
The BJP's first Parivartan Yatra was taken out from Dantewada (south Chhattisgarh) on September 12. Dantewada is known for its Naxal activities where the saffron party is bent upon wooing the tribal vote bank. The area is continuing to be volatile with frequent encounters between the security forces and the armed Naxalites.
In the third week of this month, two women Naxalites were killed in an exchange of fire with District Reserve Guards (DRG) in Dantewada. Earlier in April, the Maoists blew up an IED targetted a mini-goods van in which the security personnel were travelling, police sources said. At least 10 security personnel belonging to the District Reserve Guard (DRG) were slain in this incident.