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Assam : Massive development policy to tackle insurgency

	February 05, 2007

Stung by frequent incidents of militant violence, the state government has drawn up a two-pronged strategy to tackle militancy in the state. Having intensified operations against ULFA, it has now decided to embark on a “massive development” drive in insurgency-infested areas.



Disclosing this, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said on Feb. 3 : “We will take up development schemes in the insurgency-infested and backward areas of the state, particularly those along the state’s border, from this year’s plan allocation to dissuade youth from joining insurgent groups.” Assam’s plan outlay for 2007-2008 has been fixed at Rs 3,800 crore.



He said military operations would continue, but it was not the final solution to the problem of insurgency, which could be stemmed only through development. Identifying the high school dropout rate in the state as a fActor that “leads to social unrest”, he promised to initiate “steps to curb this trend.” He also stressed the need for vocational training institutions. “It is only through development and reducing the school dropout level by emphasising vocational training that insurgency can be tackled.”



Reiterating his appeal to ULFA to withdraw its boycott of the National Games, Gogoi said every possible step had been taken to make the event a success.





Sovereignty not negotiable



Reflecting the government’s toughening stance, the Chief Minister again told ULFA that sovereignty is not negotiable even as he appealed to the outfit not to disrupt the National Games.



Speaking at the formal announcement of the 33rd National Games in Guwahati next month, Gogoi hit both ULFA and the People’s Consultative Group with the same stick.



Observers see this as an apparent shift of policy of the government. In a letter to ULFA leader Arabinda Rajkhowa last year, the Centre had agreed to discuss sovereignty, among other issues.



The Chief Minister, who now also heads the Unified Command of security forces for the state, said they are aware that the ULFA regrouped during the time of the peace process and suspension of operations. He said ULFA should realise that the National Games will only benefit the people of Assam by promoting tourism and economic development.





ULFA attacks on Congress workers



Meanwhile, reports indicate that the ULFA attacks on Congress workers in Assam have pushed the party machinery to think out ways to prevent an erosion of the Congress base in the interiors of the state.



Party president Sonia Gandhi is reported to have held a meeting with AICC secretary Chandan Bagchi, who is in charge of party affairs in Assam last week to assess the situation. Bagchi has submitted a detailed report on the matter.



At least half-a-dozen Congress workers have been killed in the interiors of the state over the past few days. There has also been an exodus of Congress workers from these places, including the heritage island of Majuli.





Union Home Secretary to visit Myanmar



A high-level Indian delegation led by Union Home Secretary V.K. Duggal will visit Myanmar on February 13 to find solutions to the difficulties in starting operations against ULFA camps located in Sagiang division of Myanmar.



The Indian team will also talk about the progress made on sharing intelligence with Myanmar.



Observers believe that although Myanmar has shown its willingness to go after the ULFA verbally, in reality it has done precious little. Duggal’s visit comes close on the heels of a three-day visit to Yangon by Minister of External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee.





ULFA cloud on Bhutan, again



According to reports, Bhutan’s persistent denial of ULFA’s resurgence in its territory is being doubted again with the militant group freeing a kidnapped engineer of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) along Assam’s border with the Himalayan kingdom last week.



Inspector-general of police R.M. Singh confirmed that junior engineer M. Ganeshan, kidnapped from Gitibari in Udalguri district on December 22, had been held captive in Bhutan. The police said the junior engineer was let off somewhere on the Indo-Bhutan border in Baksa district. But BRO sources claimed that he was freed in Sandrup Jongkhar district of Bhutan.



ULFA had initially asked for Rs 3 crore to release Ganeshan, but scaled it down to Rs 50 lakh. Sources said about Rs 10 lakh exchanged hands before the engineer was freed.



The IGP said the militants freed the engineer for much less than the ransom they had fixed because it was “becoming risky to hold him captive in the wake of an intensive search operation by the police, Army and paramilitary forces”.



Earlier, Police teams from Assam and Bhutan had jointly searched for a suspected ULFA training camp across the border in late October and found evidence contradicting the Bhutanese embassy’s denial of the presence of any militant hideout in that country after 2003.