Jairam Ramesh in Maoist hub with action plan

ROURKELA: Armed with the Saranda Action Plan, Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh on Monday detailed his much-hyped ‘peace offensive’ to curb insurgency along the Odisha-Jharkhand border. On his second visit to the Maoist-infested Saranda forest region in the neighbouring Jharkhand, Ramesh laid the foundation stone for the Integrated Development Centre at the remote Digha village of West Singhbhum district, about 16 km from Odisha border and addressed villagers.A multi-layer security blanket was thrown by Jharkhand police following recovery of a can bomb on the unpaved Sagjori-Digha road.West Singhbhum SP AK Singh claimed the can bomb, weighing 20 kg, was planted there long before and had no link to the Minister’s visit. The site is far away from the venue, he added.Ramesh landed at Digha in a chopper at around 12 pm and spent two hours there before flying out.Addressing a function, Ramesh said Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh were among the worst-hit states of the Left wing extremism, adding only development of neglected areas could curb insurgency. He underscored the need for improved coordination among the local stakeholders, politicians and officials for rapid growth of the Saranda region. Ramesh said he would monitor the progress of works and visit Saranda once in two months.He also spoke about setting up check dams to boost agriculture and laid thrust on economic development of the poor tribal families living in the forested areas.Ramesh said that 13 road projects covering 113 km would be taken up in two years to connect all inaccessible pockets along with facilities for drinking water and electricity. The Saranda Action Plan envisages development of 56 villages covering a population of nearly 36,000. Bi-cycles, solar lamps, blankets and radio sets were distributed among the beneficiaries. Among others Jharkhand Social Welfare, Woman and Child Development Minister Vimla Pradhan was present.