The main reason for the difference in this unrest and the others preceding is the explicit support of the tribals and the local population for the Maoists. In most other civil unrest areas in India the individuals who support the movement (without actively participating) prefer to stay hidden from the eyes of the government. But not so over here. And there is a solid reason for that.

The locals over the past many years in West Bengal have been exploited to the fullest. Tribals and ethnic populations get exploited everywhere in India. However prosperity eventually provides some relief as the general living standards improve. West Bengal perhaps is one of the few states in India where the quality of life has deteriorated over the many years that the Left has been in power. Rampant corruption in the government is hidden behind politicking and boastful talk about equality and equal opportunity. The fact that a large impoverished population (indigenous as well as from across the border) is being exploited, is carefully hidden behind petty politics and arm-twisting of local administrative organizations.

The average villager in West Bengal is worse off than in neighboring states – in spite of the fact that West Bengal had one of the highest literacy rates in India at one time ( along with Kerala). These people are then easily influenced by extremists like the Maoists who at first seem to offer a better life than that offered by the state. The locals believe that the only way their lot can improve in this world is by aligning themselves with the Maoists. The Maoists on their part have made sure that they seem like the “better government” with good and quick delivery of justice and other benefits like road-building projects etc.

However at the end of the day the Maoists also are another power hungry faction of extremists. Although their causes are genuine their methods are far from correct and effective. A show of power by cornering few villages and blocking off access to them is hardly an effective demonstration of power in a country of 1 billion people. They eventually got over run by the security forces and now they are “under ground” – whatever that means. The reality is they are still very much there. They are just a bunch of people among the general population and knowing their alliances by looking at their faces is an impossible tasks.

What is now going to happen are sporadic acts of violence as these factions dissipate among the masses and start their own small wars and protests. Its like cancer and by cutting up the tumor and allowing the pieces to flow around in the blood stream is just the best way to make sure that whole body gets affected with the disease. As for the local population – more numbers will join these secret organizations as mayhem returns while the “security forces” leave. The fact is the government in West Bengal has been ineffective in dealing with the problem of exploitation in the past many years – and the scenario is not going to change after the military initiative is over.

The ideal solution to such a problem is to make an aggressive development strategy after the forces leave. This will prevent the addition of more “fuel to the fire”. Also the local administrative organizations need to be revamped quickly to reflect the views and aspirations of the local populations. Representation from among the tribals has to be quickly inserted into administrative bodies – before these same representatives stoke the fires of rebellion among the tribals again. Its time that a comprehensive solution is determined, and the lethargy of the West Bengal government in implementing policies – is scrutinized by the center.

Ironically it would have been better for the state as whole, if the security forces had entered and evacuated the Writers Building rather than the Maoist headquarters. The real problem is not the tribals or the Maoists – its the ineffective and egotistical Left Front that is sitting like a malignant tumor in the middle of this most educated and culturally evolved state. They will eventually be the real reason why the whole state will go to the gutters.

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