NCTC: measures to counter Maoists top agenda

Chief ministers of naxal-affected states and the UPA government closed ranks and decided to aggressively go after armed Maoist cadres and their top leadership, besides blocking their sources of funding.

Chief ministers of naxal-affected states and the UPA government closed ranks and decided to aggressively go after armed Maoist cadres and their top leadership, besides blocking their sources of funding.

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As the first step, the states agreed in principle to keep contractors — from whom Maoists earn a substantial amount by way of extortion — from procuring tendu patta in the tribal belt and appointing the NIA to track down the financial network of Maoists.

The chief ministers started discussions early in the day, condemning the recent “barbaric killing” of 26 people in south Chhattisgarh and resolved to “use all legitimate means at our disposal to counter the activities of the CPI (Maoist)”.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had set the tone for the discussion earlier in the day, emphasising the Centre and state governments must work together to deal with the "very grave threat" posed by Maoists.

During discussions that followed later, the chief ministers broadly agreed with the Centre’s suggestion that the security establishment needs to erode the military capability of the Maoists, which requires them to have specialised forces capable of carrying out targeted strikes.

Government sources said there was also agreement on the need to replicate the Andhra Pradesh model, that not only entailed development but also building capacity at the police station level, intelligence gathering and a Grey Hound-kind of a force to carry out strikes.

The home ministry also promised to reconsider demands that states should not be forced to pay to pay for central forces deployed for anti-Maoist action.