PM Modi praises forces during Diwali visit to Bastar

Bastar [Chhattisgarh]: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has praised India's security forces for their role in eliminating Naxalite violence, asserting that strong internal security is essential to protecting the country against external threats. Celebrating Diwali with personnel at the CoBRA Operations Base in Karanpur, Bastar, Chhattisgarh, on November 8, he said that when a nation's internal security is strong, external enemies cannot succeed.

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NaNNaNDescribing Diwali 2026 as a historic occasion, Modi said that every district in the country is now free from Naxalism, marking a major milestone in India's decades-long campaign against Left-Wing Extremism. He credited personnel from the CRPF, CoBRA, BSF, ITBP, SSB, state police forces and specialised units such as the Bastar Fighters for their sacrifices and sustained counter-insurgency operations.

Highlighting the operational progress, the Prime Minister stated that, for the first time in 47 years, not a single CRPF personnel had lost their life while on duty during the preceding year. He also recalled the scale of the earlier insurgency, which had affected more than 230 districts across nearly 20 states, and said sustained security operations and efforts to disrupt Maoist funding and supply networks had weakened the insurgency.

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Modi also connected improved security with development in previously affected regions, where Naxalite groups had disrupted schools, healthcare facilities, road connectivity and communication infrastructure. He said that the transformation of Bastar, including initiatives such as the Bastar Olympics, reflected how young people are increasingly moving towards sports and development rather than violence.

However, the Prime Minister cautioned that the threat has not completely disappeared. While armed Naxalites have been eliminated from the forests, he warned against ideological networks that, according to him, continue to challenge constitutional and democratic institutions. He called for continued vigilance alongside development efforts to consolidate the gains achieved against Left-Wing Extremism.

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