Tamil Nadu - Chennai

“States failed to involve rural masses in development process”

CHENNAI: The inability of States to provide basic services such as healthcare, drinking water, electricity, roads and education to rural inhabitants of tribal areas, provided space for left wing extremism to establish itself, said Lt. Gen. (Retd.) K. M. Seth, former Governor of Tripura and Chattisgarh.

Speaking on ‘Naxalism – threat to internal security,’ organised by the Centre for Security Analysis, Mr. Seth said the failure of the State to involve the rural masses of these neglected areas in the developmental process had also given an opportunity to the naxals to convince them.

They also won over the people by saying that the democratic process was incapable of removing their problems. In order to prove that only they (naxals) could help the people, they started holding ‘jan adalats,’ agriculture and cultural activities in the interior areas, Mr Seth said.

The naxal movement had its roots in three districts in Chhattisgarh, four in Andhra Pradesh, two in Maharashtra, one in Madhya Pradesh and three in Orissa. They were operating in forest areas, which approximately measured 1.26 lakh sq km, Mr Seth said.

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