New Delhi: The Planning Commission is
giving final touches to a plan intended to provide funds for
development of infrastructure such as roads, electricity and
drinking water in 34 Naxal-hit districts.
The Integrated Action Plan (IAP) for districts under
the grip of Left-wing extremists is being prepared under the
direction of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The fund allocations can go up to Rs 100 crore for each
district, a highly-placed source said.
As per an assessment by the Planning Commission, the
government`s flagship schemes like Bharat Nirman have not
achieved the desired results in the country`s backward areas,
aggravating the problem of extremism in several parts of
the country.
"This is happening for the first time... we are looking
at an entire development strategy (for Naxal-infested
areas)," Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh
Ahluwalia said.
The IAP would focus on particular blocks if the entire
district is not affected by extremism, the plan panel informed
the Ministry of Rural Development.
Earlier, Ahluwalia had also expressed concern over
excessive state regulations over the right of tribals to use
minor forest produce such as grass and tendu leaves.
These should not be subjected to regulation by the state
Forest Departments, he had maintained.
The commission is also looking at the possibility of
implementing the PESA (Panchayats Extension to Schedule
Areas) Act, 1996, to give tribals the right to use minor
forest produce.
Parts of as many as nine states -- Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa,
Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal -- are in the grip of Naxalism.
PTI
