High growth rate did not bring down Maoists’ violence

04/09/2010

Patna,(BiharTimes): A few months back a veteran journalist of Bihar wrote an article in a Hindi daily calling upon other states to take lesson from Bihar, which had not only registered a growth rate of 16.59 per cent in 2008-09 but also checked the Maoists’ menace. In a way attempt was made through the write-up to establish that the rise in growth rate will bring down the Naxal violence in the state.

However, August 29 exposed the fragility of this hurriedly arrived conclusion. On that day the Maoists not only abducted a Block Development Officer in Seohar district in north Bihar bordering Nepal but they also counter-attacked a raiding Bihar Military Police Party party killing seven of their personnel and abducting four others in the jungles of Lakhisarai district in south Bihar adjoining Jharkhand. The Maoists, who were in hundreds, also looted 35 rifles from the police.

As if that was not enough came the news on the same day that the Bihar’s growth rate has fallen from 16.59 per cent to 4.72 per cent in just one year. Bihar was pushed down from first to 14th position in the matter of just one year.

What is ironical is that Chhattisgarh, the state in the grip of Maoists, had registered highest––11.49 per cent––growth in 2009-10. This figure rejects the argument that the rise in growth rate would bring down Maoism.

In fact Maoism started expanding their influence in the country in the first decade of this century when the growth rate crossed eight per cent marks. The entire mineral-rich heartland passed into their hands and most of the states were ruled by the BJP or NDA––save West Bengal which has been under the Left control since 1977. The Congress-ruled Andhra Pradesh, for too long a Red bastion, however, witnessed a slight decline in the Naxal activities in this 10 years period, especially after the fall of Telugu Desam government in 2004.

Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar are under NDA rule while Jharkhand and Orissa were till lately under its control. In Orissa Navin Patnaik broke his alliance with the BJP as late as 2008.

The respected journalist failed to differentiate between Naxal activities and Ranvir Sena violence. Ever since the Miapur (Aurangabad) massacre of summer of 2000, in which 34 backward castemen, mostly Yadavs were gunned down, the Ranvir Sena violence started declining gradually. After the coming to power of the NDA on November 24, 2005 their activities almost ended.

But the Maoists are as active as ever, in fact they have spread their tentacles to the districts bordering Nepal and Jharkhand in the last five years. The state has lost a number of policemen, a DSP, a BDO and a large number of civilians. In the last couple of years they targeted several railway property––even railway stations––in Bihar. If the government version is to be believed Maoists were responsible for the massacre of 16 people––14 of them Kurmis––in Khagaria district on October 1 last year, that is, just a day after Durga Puja.

Now they have carried out the most daring operation against the state machinery. Never before they abducted and killed the policemen in Bihar as this time.

Both Maoism and growth rate are serious issues and should not be discussed as an amateur. For the growth rate the entire credit––or even blame––should not go to any state government as it also depends on the central investments in the state. In the period between 2004 and 2009 Union ministers from Bihar did bring some big projects in the state, which also helped the growth rate increase. This is not possible now.