Naxalism with guns or pens must be uprooted: Modi tells state home ministers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday mooted the idea of "One Nation, One Uniform" for the police, saying it is just a suggestion for consideration and he is not trying to impose it on the states.

Addressing a "Chintan Shivir" of state home ministers through video-conferencing, Modi also warned of forces that are increasing their intellectual sphere to push the youth towards extremism and pervert the minds of coming generations.

"Every form of Naxalism, be it the one with guns or the one with pens, has to be uprooted to prevent them from misleading the youth of the country," he said.

Modi said for the sake of the unity and integrity of the nation and with the inspiration of Sardar Patel, "We cannot allow any such forces to flourish in our country."

He said such forces get significant help internationally.

About his "One Nation, One Uniform" suggestion, the prime minister said he thinks that the identity of the police forces across the country could be identical.

"The One Nation, One Uniform for police is just an idea. I am not trying to impose it on you. Just give it a thought. It may happen, it may happen in 5, 50, or 100 years. But let's give it a thought," Modi said.

He said this will not only ensure the manufacture of quality products because they will be used on a large scale but also will give a common identity to law enforcement personnel as people will recognise them anywhere in the country.

States can have their number or insignia, he added.

Modi also urged the state governments to review old laws and amend them to the current context as he batted for coordinated action by all the agencies to meet the emerging challenges of law and order and security.

Modi said it was "very important" to maintain a good perception of the police and the "wrongs here" should be addressed.

Even though law and order is a state subject as per the Constitution, they are equally linked with the unity and integrity of the country, he said.

Modi said every state should learn, get inspired from each other and work together for internal security.

"Working together of states for internal security is a constitutional mandate as well as responsibility towards the nation," he added.

The prime minister said all agencies -- both central as well as that of states -- should cooperate with each other to ensure efficiency, better outcome and protection to the common man.

He said law and order is directly linked to development and hence it is everyone's responsibility to maintain peace.

"When the strength of the country will increase, the power of every citizen, every family will increase," he noted.

Modi said it is very important for the entire law and order system to be reliable and stressed for maintaining a good perception of police among the people.

He said several reforms for strengthening the law and order system have taken place in the last few years.

"We need to think about a common platform for technology that can be shared by all. Best practices of one state can be shared with others," he said, adding that smart technology should be adopted for a smarter law and order system.

Referring to the circulation of fake news, Modi said fact check of such news is a must and technology plays a big role in it.

"People must be made aware of mechanisms to verify messages before forwarding them," he said.

The prime minister said the good old system of generating human intelligence by the police and security agencies should be strengthened for achieving better results.

He asked the states not to look at the budget while selecting technology as "investment in today's technology is a saving in the future".

Referring to the ongoing 'Amrit Kaal', the prime minister said an 'Amrit' generation will emerge carrying the essence of the 'Panch Pran'.

"'The Panch Pran' must be the guiding force for good governance," he said.

Modi said the law and order system can be improved with the help of smart technology as maintaining law and order is a 24x7 job.

He pointed out that crime is no longer localised and instances of inter-state and international crimes are going up.

That is why mutual cooperation between state agencies as well as between central and state agencies is crucial, Modi said.

He said whether it is cybercrime or the use of drone technologies for the smuggling of weapons or drugs, the government needs to keep working towards new technologies to tackle the menace.

"The law and order system can be improved with the help of smart technology”,  the prime minister said, adding that 5G, along with its benefits, brings the need for a heightened alert.

Modi mentioned the 'Police Technology Mission' of the central government and stressed the need for a common platform as differing technologies of different states do not talk to each other.

"We should have a pan-India outlook, all our best practices should be interoperable and should have a common link," he said.

He also talked about the decriminalisation of many things in company law as a step in this direction and asked the states to also evaluate and get rid of outdated rules and laws.

Modi said the laws enacted by the central government aim to strongly handle corruption, terrorism and hawala.

"Laws like UAPA have given strength to the system in a decisive battle against terrorism," he said.

The prime minister also advocated the need to think about developing special capabilities for tourism-related policing.

He said tourists are the biggest and fastest ambassadors of the reputation of any place.

He also said police vehicles should never be old as it affects the efficiency of the force.

The two-day 'Chintan Shivir' is being organised in Surajkund, Haryana, by the Union home ministry with the objective to prepare an action plan for the implementation of 'Vision 2047' and 'Panch Pran' announced in Prime Minister Modi's Independence Day speech.

Home secretaries and director generals of police (DGPs) of states, director generals of central armed police forces (CAPFs) and central police organisations (CPOs) are attending it.