Left wing extremists have mostly relocated to other places as security forces have established their domination in Swabhiman Anchal, which was once a stronghold of the outlawed CPI(Maoist), said Odisha Director General of Police Abhay on Sunday.
Mr. Abhay, who visited Ghanbeda, once a highly Maoist affected area in the Swabhmian Anchal, where Border Security Force (BSF) recently set up Company Operating Base (COB), said, “State police, BSF and local people have been working in tandem to bring changes in the area. The transformation is visible in the area.”
“A bridge is required to be constructed for facilitating smooth movement of forces to reach Jantri, the tail end of Swabhiman area. It would mark the end of the presence of CPI (Maoist),” he said.
Malkangiri is one of the worst affected districts in India recording 332 Maoists incidents in last 12 years between 2008 and 2020. Majority of the violence by the rebels has taken place in the Swabhiman Area.
Swabhiman Area was formerly known as Cut-off area because of its remoteness that was inflicted upon people by the Balimela Dam project.
The reservoir created over 60-kilometre-long water channel encircling 151 villages from three sides. For three years between 1975 and 1978, the water-locked people did not have access to main land which almost erased their memories associated with the rest of the world.
Taking advantage of the backwardness and anger of local people against administration, the CPI (Maoist) almost turned the area into their fortress.
Swabhiman Anchal in Malkangiri district got its first road connection to rest of Odisha in 2018 when Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated Gurupriya Bridge.
