Red alert:

July 12/2011: The Maoist menace in the state has steadily been on the rise. The incidents of Maoist attacks have gone up many folds even as the state government gives tall statements of how everything is under control. The recent spate of resignations by home guards in Maoist areas are kind of a reality check for the administration. This proves no matter how much bravado we show, the ship is sinking. The lower rung of the police obviously have a feel of the undercurrents. The feeling of insecurity among them shows how much more insecure we all should be feeling.

The incidents after the kidnapping of Malkangiri Collector R Vineel Krishna led to the Reds gaining more muscle power. Government has been losing most of the little battles since then. In such a scenario, the war that the Maoists are supposedly preparing for in the days to come might not bring in much good news for the administration. Many say that the moment government decided to agree to the conditions laid down by Maoists for release of Krishna, the path was set. It was the first major victory of the Maoists, who managed to draw attention of the entire country. Sympathisers and supporters got together for dialogue. Government bent over backwards. Krishna was released. The rest is history.

More than a hundred Maoist sympathisers have been released.  Cases against the top brass like Ganti Prasad and Azad have been withdrawn. Government is committed for fulfilling many such promises soon. In this situation, villagers and lower rung of police are cannon fodder for both sides. Maoists kill informers and home guards to send a message that the battle is on. With no headway in the game, police arrests innocent villagers and dubs them as Maoists to show something has been achieved. This tug of war has resulted in strengthening the Maoists who seemingly have nothing to lose. Policemen, who are just paid employees doing their job, obviously have no way to match up to the grit and determination of the Reds. To top that, the state government has not yet been able to come up with any concrete plan of action to deal with the problem. Our very neighbours have shown that the issue can be successfully handled if dealt with seriously. The Andhra Pradesh government has tackled the Maoist menace with a hard stance. The bullet for a bullet policy has worked in the state, which has now seen a steep decline in Maoist incidents. On the other hand, the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal is handling the issue with a soft hand. By showing that the government is willing to talk and is sympathetic to their issues has helped in softening the stand of the Reds. Either way, there is some headway.

The Orissa government, however, has successfully managed to aggravate the problem by simply refusing to deal with it. It has not dealt out any clear message to either its people or the Maoists. That is probably why there are reports about Maoist leaders and members from other states congregating in Orissa since they find it a safe haven to carry forth their activities. Maoists, on the other hand, have left no opportunity of sending a message to go waste. The number of killings has gone up in the past few months. That indicates a digging in of heels which will eventually scare the police even more. It can safely be said that by not sending any message anywhere, the State administration has simply abdicated its responsibility. If the thinking is that by ignoring an issue as dangerous as this or by giving it a long rope and hoping the Reds will hang themselves on it, the people in charge are simply putting more powder in the keg. When it lights up, the blast is going to be real hard and distinctly loud. No one knows who will be hit. It is also therefore very urgent to realise that even common people on the streets may get affected when the battle starts in earnest. One thing is for sure. The battle will start and it may not be so very far off. While neighbouring states would have sorted out their problems to some extent and will be comparatively safer, Orissa will be compelled to bear the brunt. All these avoidable troubles will come to us just because we are not handling the situation now in any which way.