ROURKELA: With the banned CPI (Maoist) observing 24th People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) week from Sunday midnight, security forces are on high alert on the Odisha-Jharkhand border.
Rourkela police and their West Singhbhum counterparts in Jharkhand have stepped up operations along the border. The South Eastern Railway (SER) too has strengthened surveillance of railway tracks to avert any untoward incident.
The Eastern Regional Command of CPI (Maoist) through banners and posters put up across Naxal-infested pockets of West Singhbhum has sought locals’ cooperation to make the PLGA week a success. One poster in Hindi sought people’s support to reduce losses and enhance the victory ratio of the outfit in guerrilla wars.
It further read the narrative of Naya Bharat (new India) and Viksit Bharat (developed India) is a lie and exhorted people to build Navjanbadi Bharat (new people’s India). Sources said in view of the PLGA week observance, the West Singhbhum police along with CRPF have intensified surveillance and search operations in the Maoist-infested Saranda and Porahat forests.
SER’s senior divisional commercial manager and spokesperson for Chakradharpur Division Aditya Chaudhury said night patrolling on railway tracks has already started and security personnel of SER are working in close coordination with Jharkhand Police to ensure safe movement of trains.
He said surveillance and night patrolling on tracks at vulnerable points have further been strengthened and safety protocol is being strictly followed for safe passage of trains, especially during night hours. It is learnt, around a dozen prominent passenger trains run on the busy Howrah-Mumbai main line of SER at night.
Steps have been taken to give preference to goods trains over passenger trains on the 100-km-long stretch between Chakradharpur junction and Rourkela junction.
Rourkela police also have enhanced surveillance and search operations in Sundargarh side of the border. Rourkela SP Nitesh Wadhwani informed operational teams of SOG and CRPF have started search operations at strategic and vulnerable points on the Sundargarh side of the border and road opening parties have also been deployed.
He said along with maintaining surveillance, ground intelligence is also being collected, adding as per need intelligence is being exchanged with West Singhbhum district police on the other side of the border.
