Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday stated that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Naxalism will be completely eliminated by the year 2026.

He said that Naxalism is the biggest hurdle in the development of tribal areas and an enemy of humanity as a whole. Due to Naxalism, more than 8 crore people have been deprived of basic amenities, which is a violation of human rights.

Shah chaired a review meeting on Left Wing Extremism (LWE) in New Delhi on Monday. During his address, he said that under the Prime Minister’s leadership, all LWE-affected states, working shoulder to shoulder, are committed to completely eliminating Naxalism by March 2026.

He mentioned that the Prime Minister has set the goal of making India a developed nation by the year 2047, and our 8 crore tribal brothers and sisters have a very important role in achieving this.

He added that the true meaning of a developed India is that development reaches all 140 crore people of the country, including our 8 crore tribal brothers and sisters.

He further noted that Naxalism prevents education, healthcare, connectivity, banking, and postal services from reaching villages. He emphasized that, in order to ensure that development reaches the last person in society, we must completely eliminate the issue.

According to an official statement, since January 2024, a total of 237 Naxalites have been neutralized, 812 have been arrested, and 723 have surrendered in Chhattisgarh.

A zero-tolerance approach to Left Wing Extremism and the full implementation of government schemes will transform LWE-affected areas into fully developed regions, the Home Minister said.

The meeting chaired by Shah was also attended by the Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Telangana; the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar; and the Home Minister of Andhra Pradesh.

Union Ministers from various ministries, who are collaborating with the states to accelerate developmental works in LWE-affected areas, were also present during the meeting, along with the Home Secretary, Director of the Intelligence Bureau, Deputy National Security Advisor, senior officers of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), Chief Secretaries, Director Generals of Police, and senior officials from LWE-affected states.