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Curtains for another key anti-Maoist scheme

The scheme is expected to meet fate similar to that of the IAP with government's decision to take it out from the central budget and hand over to the state governments on the plea of implementing 14th Finance Commission's recommendation to devolve 42% of total tax share to the divisible pool of states.

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After Integrated Action Plan (IAP) that faces termination another key special infrastructure scheme (SIS) for Naxal affected states is on the verge of closure because of devolution of central pool of taxes to the states.

The key security scheme was meant for four states -- Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and Bihar -- to help them create Special Anti-Naxal Forces (SANF) based on the highly successful model of Andhra Pradesh's elite Greyhounds crack commando force.

In a cabinet decision taken during UPA-II tenure in 2013, the central government had kept a budget outlay of a whopping Rs 373 crore for four years for the SANF whose upkeep was to be directly monitored by the union home ministry.

The scheme is expected to meet fate similar to that of the IAP with government's decision to take it out from the central budget and hand over to the state governments on the plea of implementing 14th Finance Commission's recommendation to devolve 42% of total tax share to the divisible pool of states.

"Its a double whammy -- because of surrendering IAP to state we lost edge on the development front and with SIS meeting the similar fate, we will lose out a great deal on security front," said sources.

"The decision definitely will weaken the anti-Maoist strategy as SANF was meant to be the lead force to tackle the Maoists. All its personnel were being inducted from the tribal region of states from where the Maoists also get the cadre for their People's Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA). Maoists in fact were dreading this force as was evident from their communication," said sources.

The SANF was in the process of evolving into a crack force as the four states had already inducted personnel in full strength for the SANF. We were banking a lot on it to provide crucial lead during anti-Maoist operations, a senior CRPF official said.

The SANF were to be trained by special instructors trained at Greyhounds academy. Each state was supposed to get about 40 such special instructors to bring Special Forces at par with the Greyhounds. The project, however, suffered a blow after the creation of a spate state of Telangana.

Sources said that the states are unlikely to continue the SIS scheme with the same vigor and zest as the Centre will lose control over it because of being handed over to the states.

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