Raipur: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Thursday paid homage to the soldiers martyred in the Naxal attack on Wednesday in the Aranpur police station area of Dantewada district. He also met the family members of the slain jawans.
The Chief Minister was accompanied by Home Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu during his Dantewada visit. He lent a shoulder to the mortal remains of one of the jawans that was being carried to the vehicle. The mortal remains of the jawans were being transported to their native villages.
The sacrifice of the jawans will not go in vain, Bagel said adding that the fight against Naxalites will be fought with more detemination. Our jawans are fighting a battle with the Naxalites, he said emphasising that soldiers do not back down when faced with a Naxalite threat. Baghel that Naxalites had earlier suffered more losses than the country's security personnel.
Pressing on the progress made by the country in elimination the Naxal threat, the Chief Minister said that 75 camps have been established in the core Naxal-affected area in the last four years. Earlier camps used to be set up in the buffer zone only.
Stressing on the development story of Chattisgarh, Baghel said that one does not need to go to Sukma to go to Jagargunda. One can also go via Bansaguda from Aranpur, Dharamgarh and Bijapur, he said. One can also go from Sukma via Dornapal. Therefore the area is surrounded on all sides and there is no place for the Naxalites to hide. They are constantly on the retreat, he said.
Official sources said that the Chief Minister held a high-level meeting earlier in the wake of the Dantewada attack which resulted in the deaths of 10 jawans and one driver. They further revealed that during the meeting a comprehensive strategy was chalked out to eliminate Naxalism.
Apart from Baghel Home Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu, Chief Secretary Amitabh Jain, Director General of Police Ashok Juneja, Secretary to Chief Minister Ankit Anand, Inspector General of Police Intelligence Ajay Yadav took part in the meeting apart from Bagghel.
Naxalites blew up a vehicle carrying security personnel by an IED blast. They further revealed than an improvised explosive device containing 50 kg of explosive material was used by the Naxalites to carry out the attack. The blast was so strong that a 10 feet deep and wide pit was formed on the road. The vehicle carrying the soldiers was completely destroyed.
Speaking to reporters, Bastar IG Sundarraj P called it a well-planned conspiracy by the Naxalites. He said that the IED blast was done by targeting the security forces team. The attack has received strong reactions from across the country. It has raised questions on the Centre's claim that Naxalism has been witnessing a steady decline in the country. According to officials data, Naxalism related incidents have gone down by 70 per cent in 2022.
