THE COUNTER MAOIST STRATEGY

NEED OF THE HOUR TO ADDRESS THE RED CORRIDOR

 “Only through the Protracted People’s War, with people’s army as the highest weapon, the Party will carry out the task of seizure of political power by overthrowing the present reactionary state power which represents the interests of imperialism, feudalism and comprador big bourgeoisie and thereby establish a new democratic state.” - Article 54 of the constitution of the #CPI (M)

This #Maoists ideology, propagates through the adoption of violent means with a complete disregard to human life, which has resulted in inhuman attacks and causing serious loss of lives to political and government workers, security forces and innocent civilians. Presently, thirteen states in the country have seen the rise of the red revolution ensconced by unabated violence and sabotage of the authority of the Government of India.

Somehow, the haphazard and hasty policies favouring economic liberalisation have not catered to the ordinary people and have inadvertently allowed the corporate leeches to make monstrous profits thereby giving the Maoist struggle added legitimacy as a “Gandhians with a gun” movement by fledgling “Arundhati Roys” in the making and self proclaimed “Humanitarian messiahs”.

Alright, so we do have a problem gnawing at the very fabric of democracy and development. And with the tenacity and audaciousness of the brazen attack in #Chhattisgarh, which left more than 30 dead in its wake, wiping out the complete top brass of the congress regime, it wouldn’t be too far from the truth to state that our governments half hearted measures to plug the red menace have failed miserably.

So what measures does a nation, at the threshold of global recognition as an emerging economic giant with immense potential, adopt to frustrate all efforts by such negative forces trying to sap the essence of a great democracy that India is? I have a few suggestions and options which could be a workable recipe for countering the Maoist menace.

 Good Governance.           It goes without saying that the Maoists often occupy remote and backward areas with an absolute administrative vacuum and as evident in history, degradation of democratic politics plagued by poor governance has always preceded the rise of Left or #fascist forces.

The local administration and elected representatives in these tribal belts do not accommodate the voices and aspirations of people which would thwart any fascist tendencies and end their exploitation and misery at the hands of corrupt local State Police, Corporate bigwigs, forest contractors and who have pillaged local resources and deprived ordinary people of their livelihood.

  What the Government needs to do is to find ways and means to revive the sagging political process in these parts and empower them to provide tangible results in terms of civic amenities, development and employment.It is thus obvious that the real answer lies in having elected, well-funded panchayats in tribal areas and stop alienation of tribal people.

Infrastructure Development- Increase Reach.           One of the solutions to countering the spread of Maoist leanings in these remote densely forested areas is to bring about speedy infrastructure development to enable the tenets of civilisation and good governance to seep into the lives of such people.

The setting up of an intensive road network in these jungles, of the four worst-affected districts, will help security forces dominate presently inaccessible areas and bring about some semblance of law and order and go a long way in maintaining political sway over the jungle belt.

These roads will not just help sprout new police stations, but aid in establishing the full range of government offices and services including irrigation, schools and health clinics, and welfare services. A well established local government kept safe by a strong security cover will give locals the confidence that the state government is there to fight with them to the finish.

NGOs: Sowing Seeds of Self Help Small Scale Business and Handicrafts.      The role of NGOs focusing in economic aid and development of small business and handicraft industries will go a long way in providing gainful employment opportunities as well as increasing the income bracket of the population. Such self reliant projects will rake in the tenets of money based economy and bolster overall growth, education and development. The efforts to encourage such participation by indigenous and international agencies need to be done on a sincere and concerted way to bring about some tangible results in adequate time.

Centralised Strategy Rather Than State Vs Centre. The central government controls the Paramilitary forces while the state government controls the Police. This disparate interest and clash of entities groveling on petty issues like interstate rivalry and “not my jurisdiction” attitude have crippled the overall effort in combating the Maoists.  The Central Government cannot banter on that law and order is a state subject and needs to contribute sincere efforts to address the issue as unified problem- sans borders, so as to proliferate development plans and execute coordinated operational thrusts of varied security forces operating in multiple state jurisdictions.

Empowering the Security Forces.         Success can be surely achieved, through a well-trained and empowered Police Force coupled with intelligent diplomacy. This would essentially call for additional staff in the police forces, superior tactical training, specialised arms/ vehicles and robust communications.

Also, training at various esteemed training institutes of the Army like the Counter Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School, Meghalaya could help train the central/ state police forces in Jungle Warfare drills and give their bite the much needed fangs.

#Ceasefire- But Who First?  Again, one needs to coerce the Maoists to sit on the negotiating table for any meaningful discussion to take place and to work out any frame work for peaceful solution to the menace. This would be a feasible possibility only when the killings on both sides come to an end.

As such, it is imperative that the Home Ministry trumpets a call for ceasefire from both sides in all the affected areas till a workable forum for peaceful dialogue with the “Red Regime”  think tanks is mutually created.

Military Action? To Be or Not To Be.    Hot blooded factions suggest an all-out, at-any-cost fight to the finish by employing the army to crush left-wing rebels. One has to essentially understand that the problem is not military, and has no military solutions. Although Military action may be necessary to subjugate those who raise the banner of armed revolt against the State, any Military action in internal conflict zones will drastically affect the population on the whole and further escalate the alienation of the locals from mainstream governance.

Though the air force has already deployed its choppers in the ‘Red Zone’ for surveillance and logistics based sorties for catering to ground forces, any further Military ambitions in this area would be short sighted and will wean away our military might from our conventional tasks into another protracted #insurgency.

Fortunately, it is good news that sense has prevailed with the army very prudently staying away from being drawn into this murky internal war over fundamental rights and livelihoods.

Covering the whole state with good infrastructure and services will take time. So will getting complete domination of the Maoist movement. But a start in time in the right direction in all earnest should pave the way for a final solution to the “Red Menace”.