Singh is not the first Prime Minister to make such a statements. In the past two or three decades, every Prime Minister had talked about the need to tackle the Naxalites in a holistic manner. Unfortunately, despite this realization, the naxalite influence in the country is on the increase and they are running a parallel government in the territories they have captured. According to Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, they had their presence in 18 of the 28 states and were responsible for 90 per cent of the violence in the country. The Maoists solve land disputes faster than courts and impose taxes on the villagers.

The Naxalite movement started in the sixties and seventies in Naxalbari in West Bengal. Soon, it spread to neighbouring states of Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. Today the red corridor is spread far and wide from Bihar to UP to Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra , Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu to Karnataka.

Why is it spreading? The Prime Minister put it succinctly: “Despite its sanguinary nature, the movement manages to retain the support of a section of the tribal communities and the poorest of the poor in many affected areas. It has influence among certain sections of the civil society, the intelligentsia and the youth. It still retains a certain élan. All this adds to the complexity of the problem.”

Why is the government unable to contain the Maoists? It is because the Maoists know the weakness of the authorities. Incidents like Jehanabad jail breaks and the recent beheading of a police officer in Jharkhand are classic examples of their behaviour. Singur and Nandigram show their hold on the villagers. They target corrupt officials and politicians. Their method of killing is gruesome. Villagers support them out of fear. The jobless youth get attracted to the concept. They have their own network and operate in an orchestrated manner. They kill political leaders. They take hostages, kidnap officers, blast railway tracks, indulge in arson, looting, jail-breaks; in short they adopt guerilla warfare. They operate from remote tribal areas where the police are not able to reach. In a daring manner, they capture police stations, kill policemen, loot arms from the government armoury. Funds for the movement come from collection of compulsory donations from the industrialists, contractors and landlords.

Alarmed by the growing menace, the Centre wants to change its strategy in dealing with the Maoists. The suggestion of the hawks to delink the anti- Maoist drives from development seems to have found favour with the Home Minister. The priority is to first clear the area of Naxal influence before undertaking development works. The Government's hinting at a massive operation to get them has provoked the Maoists to resort to more killings. The capture of some of their top leaders and seven politburo members has also angered them. Their anger resulted in the killing of more policemen and resort to mindless violence.

The Home Ministry is hinting at a massive anti-Maoist drive after Diwali. Perhaps the government is looking back to 1971 when massive anti-Naxal operations with the help of the army were used to break the Naxal movement. However, times have changed; so have the Maoists' methods. They have improved methods of communication; they now own AK 47 rifles, most modern arms and remain most secretive about their plans. The Home Ministry has ruled out the use of army in the operations although army has been deployed in Singur, Nandigram and other Naxal-affected areas and even in polling stations for peaceful conduct of polls. Instead, it will be the paramilitary forces which will form the buffer zone.

However, before launching such a drive, the government has to ensure certain things. First of all, preparations for the anti-Maoist drive should be effective. Secondly, the people have to be prepared for this new strategy. Thirdly, there should be free flow of funds for the police and para-military forces. Fourthly there should be perfect coordination between the Centre and the concerned state. Fifthly, the sharing of intelligence among the naxal-affected states should be ensured. Also, the chain of command should be perfectly clear during the operations. Moreover, development of the affected area should be taken up with proper plan and commitment. Tribals in the forests should have confidence in the government so that they do not protect the Maoists any more. Last but not the least, the people should know it is a long fight and should cooperate.

The authorities have launched a huge publicity campaign about the Maoist menace. The new strategy is a gamble. It remains to be seen whether it succeeds. If it does, the Maoists will be on the run. Otherwise, they wopuld resort to greater violence.(IPA Service)