Union Home Minister, Amit Shah said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, all Left-Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected states, working shoulder to shoulder, are committed to eliminating Naxalism by March 2026. Mr Shah stated that to completely eradicate Naxalism, it is essential to give a final push to eliminate this menace once and for all. Mr Shah, today chaired a review meeting with the Chief Ministers of LWE-affected states in New Delhi. In his address, Mr Shah urged the Chief Ministers of all affected states to review the progress of development and anti-Naxal operations at least once a month. He also asked the Director Generals of Police to conduct such reviews at least once every 15 days.
The Home Minister mentioned that Prime Minister Modi has set the goal of making India a developed nation by the year 2047, and the country’s eight crore tribal people have a very important role in it. Mr Shah said that the biggest obstacle in bringing development to remote areas and tribal communities today is Naxalism. He emphasized that to ensure that the development reaches the last person in the society, Naxalism must be eliminated. Mr Shah highlighted major success has been achieved in the fight against Naxalism from 2019 to 2024. Mr Shah emphasized that with a zero-tolerance approach towards left-wing extremism and 100 per cent implementation of government schemes, we want to fully develop the LWE-affected areas. Union Home Minister mentioned that for the first time in 30 years, the number of casualties due to Left LWE was below 100 in the year 2022, which is a significant achievement. He mentioned that from 2014 to 2024, there has been a substantial decline in Naxal-related incidents. Mr Shah said that the fight against LWE is in its final phase, and by March 2026, with everyone’s cooperation, the country will be completely free from this decades-old menace.
The Home Minister also complimented the Chhattisgarh government for its success in combating Naxalism. He appealed to the youth involved in Naxalism to abandon the path of violence and join the mainstream of society to contribute to the country’s development. He noted that more than 13 thousand people from the Northeast, Kashmir, and LWE-affected areas have renounced violence and joined the mainstream. Mr Shah asked the youth engaged in Naxalism, that all states have developed beneficial rehabilitation schemes for them. He emphasized that it has now been fully proven that no one benefits from Naxalism. Mr Shah said that 180 crore was spent under the security-related expenditure scheme from 2004 to 2014, which the Modi Government has increased almost 3 times to over three thousand crore rupees between 2014 to 2024.
The Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Telangana, the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and the Home Minister of Andhra Pradesh participated in the meeting. Union Ministers from various ministries, who are cooperating with the states to accelerate developmental works in LWE-affected areas, were also present during the meeting.
