CRPF train youth under community interactive programme in Maoist-hit Lalgarh
Lalgarh, Dec 3 (ANI)
In a bid to counter the Maoists propaganda among local youth, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) recently launched a 'Community Interactive Programme' in Naxal-hit Lalgarh in West Bengal's West Midnapore District.
The programme by the CRPF aimed to inculcate a sense of security by developing cordial relations and harnessing co-operation with villagers living in the Maoist hotbed.
The Commandant, 50 battalion of the CRPF, Shankarlal Sengupta said that the objective of the programme is to ensure that the youth become the messengers of peace.
"More than 45 youths have been given employed in various government sectors and we took this initiative to implement the programme after surveying the area. I think that these youth will become harbingers and will become messengers of peace. They will also clear the misconceptions on various issues among the people. They will show that they can work for us and help us to earn our livelihoods," said Sengupta.
Rahul Sinha, a student, however, appreciated the move and said that the programme would help them to secure their future.
"We have come here to undergo training by overcoming all our fears. We are feeling nice and it is a good step," said Sinha.
Maoists have also significantly increased their presence in tribal and rural regions in the states of Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Orissa.
The Maoists say they are fighting for the rights of millions of landless people and marginal farmers. However, the government has termed them as India's main internal security threat.