NEW DELHI — Prime Minister Narendra Modi is heading to Bastar in Chhattisgarh on Sunday to celebrate Diwali with the security personnel deployed in the region's anti-Naxal operations, he announced in a post on X on the morning of the festival. The Press Information Bureau confirmed the visit in a release issued on Sunday morning.

Source: Press Information Bureau

“Heading to Bastar to celebrate Diwali with our brave security forces. This is an area where Naxalism once held sway and now, development is flourishing. I am going to salute our brave security personnel for their sacrifices, selfless service and unwavering devotion to the nation,” the Prime Minister wrote, adding in Hindi: “कल तक जहां नक्सलियों का कहर था वहां आज विकास की बहार है” — where the terror of the Naxals reigned until yesterday, the bloom of development flourishes today.

The visit comes days after Home Minister Amit Shah declared Chhattisgarh Naxal-free, capping a long security campaign in the Bastar division, long regarded as the epicentre of Left Wing Extremism in India. Read: Shah declares Chhattisgarh Naxal-free

The announcement coincides with a milestone for the Central Reserve Police Force, which has completed 12 consecutive months without an operational fatality — its last operational fatality was on October 30, 2025. Director General G.P. Singh has credited the run to contemporary hardware, better training, strategic planning and faster post-incident evacuation, according to ANI. The CRPF has been at the forefront of anti-Naxal operations in Bastar.

Source: ANI

Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma said on Saturday that several villages in Bastar would celebrate Diwali for the first time this year, saying the region no longer faces the threats it once did. The claim was contested by state Congress president Deepak Baij, who said Naxalism has not been completely eradicated — a dispute the Prime Minister's visit is likely to sharpen.

Modi has made celebrating Diwali with the armed forces a signature tradition of his tenure; in 2025 he marked the festival aboard the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant off the Goa–Karwar coast. He is expected to spend the festival with personnel in Bastar later on Sunday.