Title : NAXALISM IN INDIA

Date : Feb 24, 2022

Description :

Based on a News Article published in the ‘The Hindu’

 

Useful for UPSC CSE Prelims and Mains (GS Paper III)

 

 

 

India's naxalism:

 

 

• The term "Naxalism" comes from the West Bengal village of Naxalbari.
• It began as a revolt against local landowners who had assaulted a peasant over a land dispute. Under the leadership of Kanu Sanyal and Jagan Santhal, the revolt began in 1967 with the goal of ensuring the rightful redistribution of land to working peasants.
• The movement began in West Bengal and has since spread throughout Eastern India, particularly in less developed areas of states such as Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh.
• Naxals are thought to be supporters of Maoist political attitudes and ideology.
• Maoism is a communist ideology created by Mao Tse Tung. It is a strategy that combines military insurrection, public mobilization, and strategic partnerships to seize state power.

 

 

 

Causes:

 

 

• Unrest among the tribes:

 

• Tribals who rely on forest products for their livelihood are barred from even harvesting a bark under the Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980.
• Massive tribal population displacement in naxalism-affected states as a result of development projects, mining operations, and other factors.
• Maoists have an easy target: Maoists recruit such persons who have no other means of subsistence into naxalism.
• Maoists supply these individuals with weapons, ammo, and money.

 

 

 

• Gaps in the country's socioeconomic system:

 

• The government gauges its success by the number of violent attacks rather than the progress made in naxal-infested areas.
• Inability to confront naxalites due to a lack of superior technological intelligence.
• Infrastructural issues, for example, several communities are still not effectively connected to any communication network.
• Administration does not follow up: It has been seen that even after the police have taken control of a region, the administration fails to deliver critical services to the residents of that region.
• There is debate on whether naxalism should be treated as a social problem or as a security danger.
• State governments see naxalism as a problem for the federal government and hence do not take any action to combat it.

 

 

 

• The Government's Initiatives to fight Naxalism:

 

• Green Hunting Operation: It began in 2010, with a major deployment of security personnel in naxal-infested areas.
• In the nine years since 2010, the number of districts plagued by naxalism has decreased from 223 to 90.
• The administration even launched a 'Relief and Rehabilitation Policy' to help naxalites reintegrate into society.
• Members of communist parties' Central Committee Politburo have either been killed or jailed.
• Launched in 2018, the Aspirational Districts Programme aims to change districts that have made very little development in important social sectors.
• The government's ongoing efforts have reduced the frequency of violent attacks in naxalism-affected areas.

 

 

 

Suggestions:

 

• The government requires creative techniques for tracking down armed organizations in the dense forests of naxalism-affected areas.
• Local police are more familiar with a region's language and topography, and thus are more equipped to combat naxalism than the military forces.
• Andhra Pradesh Police created the 'Greyhounds,' a special unit to combat naxalism in the state.
• Two things must be ensured by the government: the security of peace-loving people and the growth of naxalism-affected areas.
• State governments must recognize that naxalism is their problem as well, and that only they can successfully combat it. I
• f necessary, they can seek assistance from the federal government.
• Although India has made considerable progress in combating naxalism, the core reasons have yet to be addressed.
• The central and state governments should stick to their two-pronged strategy of safeguarding the safety of people living in naxal-affected areas while also taking steps to develop those areas.

 

Tags : maoism, internal security