CM for rehabilitation plan of ‘Salwa Judum’ displaced tribals

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Monday said that tribal families who shifted to Andhra Pradesh and Telangana during ‘Salwa Judum’ are welcome.

The state government will prepare a conducive environment for their rehabilitation with an action plan, he said.

Baghel was holding a discussion with a delegation of tribal families of Bastar region from Telangana here.

Industries Minister Kawasi Lakhma and Chhattisgarh State Scheduled Tribes Commission Chairman Bhanupratap Singh were also present.

The tribal families hailing from Sukma, Bijapur and Dantewada districts had migrated to Telangana when the ‘Salwa Judum’ was at its peak.

The delegation sought rehabilitation at a suitable place and land for agriculture.

The Chief Minister promised to provide them land on their return to the state and said they would also get basic facilities including ration shop, school and employment.

In Chhattisgarh, the ‘Salwa Judum’ began in 2005 from Kutru village in Bijapur as a mass movement’ against the Maoists. With its spread, the government stepped in to back the movement.

In 2008, 23 Salwa Judum camps were established in Dantewada and Bijapur having 50,000 tribals from 600 villages after Naxalites targeted the villagers. The government then armed the tribal youth to fight the Maoists.

The Supreme Court in 2016 asked the Chhattisgarh government to withdraw support to and dismantle the SPOs by disarming them on a petition filed by human rights activists.