Will resolve naxalism through development and not Army: Chhattisgarh CM

Raipur: Chhattisgarh Government will resolve the Left wing extremism through development and not through Army, Chief Minister Raman Singh said here even as he observed that the state is on the fast track of development.

"People of Bastar (south Chhattisgarh) want development now. They demand for schools, better roads and communication network. They have now well aware for the fact that who are hindering their development (sic)," Singh said addressing a programme of a news channel last evening.

Naxals have traditionally built their presence and increased control among local tribals in Bastar and Dantewada districts.

The CM said the efforts of his government and administration to win confidence of people from Bastar are bearing fruits.

"People of Bastar wanted to join the mainstream of development. We will solve naxalism through development and not by using Army against them (naxals)," he said.

Singh further said that a strong foundation of development has been laid in the state in past twelve years "which will help Chhattisgarh flourish in future".

"The state was once termed as a backward state from where people migrated to other places, but now it is giving a strong competition to the developed states," he said. Singh also hailed the power generation capacity of the state.

"The power generation capacity has grown to 4,000 MW while simultaneously the per capita electricity consumption has been increased from 670 units to 1560 units, which is better than the national average," he said while referring to schemes like the Food Security Act and Public Distribution System (PDS), which he termed as "achievements" of his government.

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