Report Card: May 2010

Report Card of the Ministry of Home Affairs for May 2010

I present before you the report of the Ministry of Home Affairs for the month of May, 2010.

An Action Plan for the Ministry of Home Affairs for 2010-11 has been finalized. The first review, division-wise, will be conducted after the end of the first quarter. On May 3, May 5 and May 6, 2010, the Rajya Sabha discussed the working of the Ministry of Home Affairs. I replied to the debate. On May 6 & 7, 2010, there was a discussion in the Lok Sabha on specific parameters for conducting the Census. I replied to the debate.

Internal Security
The month of May 2010 witnessed a very large number of violent attacks by the CPI (Maoist). Some of them are:

1. On May 8, 2010 an IED was used to blow up a bullet-proof CRPF vehicle in Peddekodepal in district Bijapur, Chhattisgarh killing eight CRPF personnel.
2. On May 12 and May 16, 2010 ten persons were kidnapped/killed in the districts of Kanker and Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh.
3. On May 17, 2010 an IED was used to blow up a civilian bus killing 15 civilians and 16 policemen/SPOs, besides injuring 12 civilians and 16 policemen/SPOs in district Dantewada, Chhattisgarh.
4. On May 19, 2010 an IED was used to blow up a CRPF vehicle killing a Deputy Commandant and 4 other CRPF personnel in district West Midnapore, West Bengal.

On May 28, 2010 the Howrah-Kurla-Jnaneshwari Express was derailed by removal of fish plates and the cutting off of a portion of the rail track. The derailment led to a collision with a goods train leading to the death of 147 persons and injuries to over 150. The needle of suspicion points to the CPI (Maoist) or a front organisation of the CPI (Maoist); however, the identity of the culprit can be established only in the investigation.

Action has been taken by the CRPF on the report submitted by the E.N. Ram Mohan Committee to enquire into the Dantewada incident of April 6, 2010.

Visits to States
I visited Mizoram and Assam on May 25, 2010 to review the security situation in those States. Meetings were held at Aizawl and Guwahati. 

In Mizoram, I met delegations of the Bru community and members of the District Councils of Mara, Lai and Chakma tribes. I am glad to report that the return of Bru refugees from Tripura to Mizoram has commenced. So far, 263 families have returned.

The security situation in Manipur was a cause for concern. There was a stand-off between the NSCN (IM) and the Government of Manipur on the request of Shri T Muivah to visit his ancestral village, Somdal in Ukhrul district, Manipur. In order to set the record straight, I issued a statement on May 15, 2010. (A copy of the statement is attached.) To ensure peace, 5 additional Bns of CPMFs were deployed. Services of IAF aircraft were made available for airlifting essential items to Manipur. NH 53 was reopened for traffic on May 21, 2010 and there is now uninterrupted supply of goods to Manipur. However, the situation remains under constant watch.

Investigations
On May 17, 2010, the NIA filed a combined charge sheet in the Goa bomb blast cases of December 11, 2009 against 6 accused, 2 of whom had died in the blasts.

On May 25, 2010, ATS, Maharashtra arrested one of the prime suspects in the Pune blast case (of February 13, 2010). I wish to impress upon everyone that the arrested person, at this stage, is only a suspect and hence this information should be treated with circumspection.

Naxalism

Work plans for 9 naxal-affected States amounting to a total of Rs 331.12 crore were approved.

CPOs/CPMFs

In the month of May, 2010, the following procurements amounting to Rs. 296.95 crore were approved under the MPF Scheme:

Work is in progress under the ambitious CPMF Housing Project for the 5 clusters/30 sites for 13,026 dwelling units. 43 bids of the total 91 bids received have been short-listed for the RFP stage.

On May 10, 2010, the RRs for sepoys in the Narcotics Control Bureau were notified.

Three more RRs of CPMFs were notified viz., EDP cadre of IB on May 17, 2010; ASI (Exec.) cadre of ITBP on May 21, 2010; and Constables/Followers cadre of CISF on May 31, 2010.

On May 29, 2010, Rules for the recruitment of 753 Assistant Commandants through the CPF (AC) Exam, 2010 were notified.

Lump sum ex-gratia compensation amounting to Rs. 3.35 crore were sanctioned to the next of kin of martyred CPMF personnel in 26 cases.

In order to further strengthen security at airports and other vital installations 1,090 additional posts have been created in the CISF:-

Sanctions amounting to Rs. 26.04 crore were issued for acquisition of land and construction of buildings/barracks for CPMFs:-

A total sum of Rs. 8.64 crore was reimbursed to the states of Nagaland, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab and the railway authorities on account of deployment of State armed police and RPF for election duties and for duties in naxal-affected areas.

Border Management
India-Bangladesh Border: 
13 kms of fencing and 16 kms of road works were completed in May, 2010 under phase II of the project. 12 kms of fencing was replaced in May, 2010 under phase III of the project. Poles for floodlighting were erected on a length of 35 kms during the month of May 2010.

India-China Border: 
2.04 kms of formation works and 1.3 kms of surfacing works were completed during May, 2010.

Border Area Development Programme (BADP): 
First instalments were released to four States as follows:

Coastal Security: 
6 boats were delivered in May, 2010 thereby completing the targeted acquisition of 126 boats. Fresh targets for 78 more boats have been approved for delivery by December, 2010.

Immigration:
On May 13, 2010, the mission mode project on Immigration, Visa and Foreigners Registration & Tracking was approved at a total cost of Rs. 1,011 crore.
On May 13, 2010, 107 posts of immigration personnel were created for Andaman & Nicobar Islands air and sea ports.
In May, 2010 computer hardware was installed at 1 more ICP, taking the total to 34 (out of 42) in Phase-I.

IPS Cadre

Shri Rajiv (IPS, 1975:UP) was appointed as DG, NDRF&CD.
States and UTs

Security arrangements for the Commonwealth Games were reviewed in consultation with Delhi police and the CPMFs. 6 companies of CPMF were deployed for the test events held between May 23-30, 2010.

On the request of the Government of West Bengal, 48 additional CPMF companies were deployed for the municipal elections on May 30, 2010.

The supply, installation, integration and commissioning of the C4i (Command, Control, Coordination and Communication Centre) project for the Delhi Police HQs was sanctioned at a cost of Rs 15.39 crore.

Under the MPF Scheme, Rs. 9.25 crore was sanctioned for the UTs.

On May 4, 2010, the Daman and Diu Marine Fishing (Amendment) Regulations were notified.

Judicial
The President of India has accorded assent to the following Bills:

1. The West Bengal Cooperative Societies Bill, 2006 on May 13, 2010
2. The Delhi Industrial Development Operation and Maintenance Bill, 2010 on May 13, 2010
3. The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board Bill, 2010 on May 13, 2010
4. The Indian Stamp (Delhi Amendment) Bill, 2010 on May 13, 2010.

Disaster Relief

NDRF deployed 12 teams consisting of 438 personnel with 64 boats for disaster relief following cyclone ‘Laila’ with effect from May 19, 2010.

Four teams consisting of 132 personnel with necessary equipment were deployed for rescue and relief following the derailment and collision of trains in West Bengal on May 28, 2010.

Census 2011 and National Population Register
Data collection for House listing & Housing census and for the National Population Register commenced in 12 more States/UTs in the month of May, 2010. They are Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, J&K (synchronous areas), Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.

NPR for the coastal areas has been completed in seven States and four UTs and will be completed in the remaining two States of Maharashtra and West Bengal by June, 2010. Biographical details of approximately 115 lakh persons and biometric details of approximately 60 lakh persons have been collected so far under NPR in the coastal areas”.

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The home minister's statement of May 15, 2010

Mr. Prakash Javadekar, MP, led a delegation to meet me on Friday, May 14, 2010 in connection with the situation in Manipur. After hearing the delegation, I explained in detail the developments in the past week. The delegation thanked me for the patient hearing; for the briefing on the developments in Manipur; and urged me and the Government to continue to deal with the situation with tact and understanding. The delegation expressed satisfaction at the conclusion of the meeting. I am, therefore, surprised and disappointed by the statement issued by Shri Prakash Javadekar yesterday.

In order to set the record straight, I wish to point out that Government of India is holding talks with the NSCN (IM) led by Shri Muivah. Shri Muivah expressed a desire to visit his native village, Somdal, in Ukhrul district, Manipur. He submitted an itinerary through the Interlocutor Shri R.S. Pandey. Shri Muivah was told that his visit can be facilitated in consultation with the Government of Manipur. The Government of Manipur took the stand that such a visit would not be appropriate at this time. Efforts were made over several days to find a solution. The Chief Minister of Manipur was requested to go over to Delhi and he did so on May 6, 2010. The Finance Minister, the Defence Minister and the Home Minister held talks with the Chief Minister, Manipur. However, after his return to Imphal, the Chief Minister reiterated the stand of his Government that the visit of Shri Muivah to Somdal could not be allowed at this stage.

The demands of NSCN (IM) and other Naga groups go back many years. After extensive ground work, NSCN (IM) leaders were persuaded to come to India to hold talks. From time to time, there will be problems and difficulties. The effort of the Government of India will be to deal with these problems and difficulties, patiently and tactfully. The immediate problem is to ensure that the national highways are open and supplies of goods reach every district of Manipur. The Government of India is addressing this problem in coordination with the State Governments concerned. At this stage, all sections of the people, especially the political parties, should support the Government in its efforts’.