Orissa faces dual security threat: Chidambaram

Asking Orissa Govt to remain extra careful during elections, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram promised additional security forces saying that the state faced a dual security threat from naxalites and communal elements.

Asking Orissa government to remain extra careful during elections, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday promised additional security forces saying that the state faced a dual security threat from naxalites and communal elements.

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Promising support to the state during elections, Chidambaram who was in Bhubaneswar for a two-hour visit said additional central forces would be provided considering the threat it faced.

On the state government’s demand for a helicopter for aerial patrol during the polls, the Home Minister said he would look into the matter ‘seriously´.

Stating that the Centre had provided a helicopter to Orissa for patrol during the communal riots in Kandhamal, Chidambaram said the situation there was well under control, while the while naxal menace has been checked to some extent.

It was the responsibility of the state government to ensure peaceful elections in Kandhamal and elsewhere, he added.

He also said “I am informed that the state is raising commando forces and security battalions and augmenting the police system to meet challenges.”