Raipur: The central government does not have any evidence of the Maoists, against whom the security forces have launched a major offensive, getting external monetary help, P Chidambaram said Friday.
"There is no evidence of the Naxals (Maoists) getting external monetary help though they are getting smuggled arms," he replied to a query on the issue at a press conference here after presiding over a two-hour meeting with Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, Orissa Chief Minister Navin Patnaik, Maharashtra Home Minister RR Patil and officers of paramilitary forces.
Officials who attended the meeting said the participants were of the unanimous view that massive all-round development and infrastructure projects should be taken up in the areas being cleared of and to be cleared of the Maoists.
Chidambaram also assured the three states that the centre was committed to provide all help to them, including more funds and paramilitary forces, as also other resources, to get rid of the left-wing extremists.
At the press conference, Chidambaram urged the media to not fall to prey to Maoist propaganda, saying: "I will take care of the international media but you shouldn`t give space to Maoist propaganda."
"Naxals are misleading the people, 283 schools are destroyed, innocent people were getting killed even yesterday (Thursday), they killed two boys in Chhattisgarh who belonged to primitive tribes as they wanted to get recruited in army," Chidambaram stated.
"Is the killing of boys and students the Naxals` ideology and philosophy?" he asked.
Govt to reassert authority in Maoist areas:
Home Minister P Chidambaram said that states had agreed to coordinate actions against Maoist guerrillas and that the government`s goal was to reassert authority in rebel bastions.
"(Our aim is) to reassert the civil administration to be followed immediately by development in areas dominated by Naxalites for quite some years," Chidambaram said after a meeting with top officials of Orissa, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh here.
"The meeting was successful", the minister told reporters. "We identified progress we made... We identified steps to be taken.
"The (anti-Maoist) operations will continue. Our goal is not to kill anyone but to reassert the civil administration to be followed immediately by development in areas dominated by Naxalites for quite some years."
Chidambaram chaired a two-hour meeting at the tate secretariat with Chief Ministers Raman Singh of Chhattisgarh and Navin Patnaik of Orissa, Maharashtra Home Minister RR Patil and officials of paramilitary forces.
He said that the central government was offering troops and technology to states to take on the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist).
"My approach to the CPI-Maoist and other such banned organisations is that you will suspend violence and we will talk. But they are killing people. Even yesterday they killed two boys in Chhattisgarh who belonged to primitive tribes as they wanted to get recruited in (the Indian) Army," he said.
"The coordinated operation (against Maoists) is just a few weeks old. The progress is satisfactory and in future it will be more satisfactory. In many places Naxalites are retreating and we welcome it. But in some areas they are engaged in battle," Chidambaram said.
IANS
