Director General of Police Kanwar Brajesh Singh on Sunday said a large number of Maoists have infiltrated into Odisha because of heightened security in neighbouring Jharkhand.
“There are currently 11 districts affected by Maoist menace in Odisha. Due to panchayat elections in Jharkhand, a large number of cadre Maoists have infiltrated into Odisha. We have successfully checked them. Two Maoists have been killed in (anti-ultras) operations. It is a very good sign that Maoist activities have reduced everywhere,” said the DGP while speaking to reporters after a review meeting here.
Singh lauded his force’s success in the ongoing anti-Maoist operations and highlighted on a twofold strategy to contain the Red rebels’ violence.
“Our approach is twofold. First is to keep the police operations on, and the second is to take up maximum local area development,” he said.
“We have also reviewed the prosecution of crimes. We are trying to improve the conviction rate and the law and order situation. There are a large number of vacancies due to court orders and litigation. We are sorting them out. I am hopeful that in another one or two month, these problems would be sorted out and we would be able to recruit more personnel,” he added.
Notably, two Maoists were killed in a gun battle with joint security forces in combing operations in the Chandiposh forest near Rourkela on November 11 and 12.
It may also be noted that on Sunday, Special Operations Group (SOG) commandos seized a large amount of explosives from the Tekaguda forest in Malkangiri district during a combing operation. However, Maoist leader Uday managed to escape.