President Murmu in Chhattisgarh: Work to link Maoist-hit people to mainstream in final stage

President Droupadi Murmu addressed during the silver jubilee function of the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly, in Raipur, on March 24, 2025.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Emphasising the need for inclusive development, President Droupadi Murmu on Monday (March 24, 2025) said people from the Maoist-affected regions of Chhattisgarh wanted to move forward on the path of development. She was addressing the MLAs of the State in the Legislative Assembly in Raipur.

“The task of connecting people affected by left wing extremism to the mainstream of society has reached its final and decisive stage. People of the Naxal-affected areas of Chhattisgarh want to move ahead on the path of development. I am confident that all of you will soon succeed in your efforts to completely free Chhattisgarh from extremism and add a golden chapter to the history of the State,” she said in her address, part of the silver jubilee celebrations of the Chhattisgarh State Assembly.

Earlier, she said that along with moving ahead on the path of modern development, the State had to ensure the protection of the environment. “All of you policymakers of the State have the responsibility to establish a balance between development and nature. Along with this, it is also your responsibility to connect all sections of the society with the modern development journey,” said the President.

Ms. Murmu, who started her speech with the traditional Chhattisgarhi greeting of Jai Johar, said the State had immense possibilities for development, highlighting sectors such as cement, mineral industry, steel, aluminum, and power generation along with the natural resources such as forests.

Unique example

Praising the democratic traditions of the State Assembly in the past quarter of a century, Ms. Murmu said the Chhattisgarh Assembly had made an extraordinary rule of automatic suspension of members who enter the well during the proceedings of the House and followed it. She noted that during the last 25 years, the marshalls never had to be used.

“The Chhattisgarh Assembly has presented a unique example of excellent parliamentary conduct not only to the rest of India but also to all the democratic systems of the world,” she said.

Ms. Murmu was the third Indian President to address the Chhattisgarh Assembly after the late A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and Pratibha Patil, said Speaker Raman Singh.