Odisha DGP says State on path to end ‘Naxal menace’ by March 2026

A total of 216 police and security personnel across India were martyred during September 2023 and August 2024 in ongoing conflicts

The 65th Police Commemoration Day was observed across Odisha on Monday (October 21, 2024). Director General of Police (DGP) Yogesh Bahadur Khurania paid rich tributes to the policemen of the State who had laid down their lives while performing duties this year between September 2023 and August 2024. He was attending a function at the State police headquarters here.

Sources said a total of 216 police and security personnel across the country were martyred during September 2023 and August 2024. While the highest number martyrs of 23 were reported from Maharashtra, the Central Reserve Police Force also lost 23 of their jawans while performing their official duties in the same period. DGP Kurania paid his tributes to all the departed souls while consoling their kinfolk.

Addressing the policemen on the day, Mr. Khurania quoted Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who had recently declared that Naxalism in India will be completely uprooted by March 2026. “I am confident that Odisha police is capable of meeting this deadline,” he said adding that the left wing extremism activities are now limited to very few pockets of the State and they will be eliminated soon.

Calling upon the militants to shun violence and join the mainstream, the DGP asserted that the terrorist and communal forces in the State will be crushed with a heavy hand. He added that these disruptive forces would not be allowed any space as the State and the country are now marching ahead with developmental activities. The DGP congratulated all police personnel of Naxal prone areas.

Police Commemoration Day is observed every year on October 21 to commemorate the supreme sacrifices of ten policemen, who were martyred in the hot springs in North-Eastern Ladakh in 1959 while defending India’s border from Chinese aggression.

Published - October 21, 2024 08:19 pm IST