Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not been successful in curbing the menace of naxals. Only visible achievement is the renaming of all Maoist and Naxalite activities as “Left Wing Extremism”. Modi government does not have any excuse to avoid addressing this issue. Though it is for the Center to solve the issue, co-operation from the State administration is also vital. They have their own party’s governments in Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and friendly governments in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

Here is the track record of Modi government in 2016, in their effort to tackle “left wing extremism”:

30 March 2016 – 7 CRPF jawans were killed in Dantewada.

29 March 2016 – Naxals kill 2 villagers in Gadchiroli

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23 March 2016 – Naxals gun down tribal for being former ‘police informer’

21 March 2016 – Naxals kill youth in Chhattisgarh

12 March 2016 – 2 BSF men killed, 4 injured in Maoist encounter in Chhattisgarh

8 March 2016 – Naxals gun down quarry manager, set vehicles on fire

8 March 2016 – Naxals kill trader branding him a police informer

6 March 2016 – Chhattisgarh: Two Labourers Dead in Landmine Blast by Naxals

4 March 2016 – 3 CRPF jawans were killed, 13 injured in Sukma district

2 March 2016 – At least 16 villagers killed by Naxals in Chhattisgarh

28 Feb 2016 – Maoists Kill Two Tribals for Being ‘Police Informers’

17 Feb 2016 – Chhatisgarh: Naxals kill man suspecting him to be police informer

13 Feb 2016 – BSF jawan dies in Maoist attack

31 Jan 2016 – 1 killed in cross firing between ultra outfits

28 Jan 2016 – Three policemen killed in blast by Naxals and seven injured

8 Jan 2016 – Odisha: BSF officer, jawan killed in Naxalite IED blast attack

I do not record the number of these extremists who are killed. May be there are huge casualties. But, it has little impact if our men in uniform and civilians continue to die. I also will not compare the casualties during the UPA time, to give this government an excuse. Yes, I am aware that 2015 saw the lowest naxal violence in 6 years. But, these deaths must be stopped. Period.

This list may not even be exhaustive. As many deaths may not even be reported. Very recently, government had declared that it will work in “mission mode” to tackle the menace. If that was indeed the case, how was such a lapse possible on 30 March 2016? Why were not additional precautions taken to ensure safety of our personnel? It is time Rajnath Singh start delivering results. Eliminating the menace must be the only yardstick to measure the success of such an effort.