Jagdalpur: President Droupadi Murmu on Friday, October 23 said Chhattisgarh has been freed from the menace of Naxalism and is now rapidly moving on the path of progress, PTI reported. She was speaking in Jagdalpur, where she took part in the Muria Darbar during the Bastar Dussehra celebrations.

Source: PTI via Daily World

PTI also reported the President saying that tribal youth will actively participate in India's journey towards becoming a developed nation.

Source: PTI via Daily World

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai welcomed the President's participation in the Muria Darbar, describing it as a historic occasion, ANI reported. He said it was perhaps the first time a President of India was participating in the Muria Darbar, part of what he called the world's longest Dussehra festival, spanning 75 days, and that she would also address a public meeting at the Lal Bagh grounds.

Source: ANI via LatestLY

Sai alleged that the Congress had consistently used the tribal community merely as a 'vote bank' — an allegation the Congress has not responded to in these reports — and asserted that Naxalism had been eradicated from the Bastar region. The President's Chhattisgarh visit ran from October 22 to 23, with the Jagdalpur Muria Darbar and public programme scheduled for October 23, the President's Secretariat said in a statement reported by ANI.