IIT Kharagpur student Amit Kumar with SSP Amit Lodha in Gaya on Tuesday. Picture by Suman

Patna, Jan. 19: Police have come up with an out-of-the-box tool to counter Maoists in Gaya — books.

Firmly believing that educated youths cannot be dragged into Naxalism, the district police have decided to help talented village children to get established. Gaya senior superintendent of police (SSP) Amit Lodha has instructed all the deputy superintendents of police to spot talented children in villages, especially those in Dumaria and Imamganj.

Police sources said the raid on the Barha village on Monday, around 100km from Gaya town, was an eye-opener.

“We saw many children doing absolutely nothing which implied their bleak future. We want to give them a chance to grow. Distributing blankets is good but it gives temporary relief. The plan to educate village children has been discussed with the director-general of police and other senior officers. They appreciated the proposal and gave us the green signal. The children will be scanned on the basis of their dedication and talent. We are still in the process of chalking out the entire plan,” Lodha said. “The police have started to fund 21-year-old Amit Kumar of Kendua village. Infected with polio, he is at present pursuing a preparatory course from IIT, Kharagpur. He is intelligent and we will help him financially to get through to the prestigious institution. His father, Vijay Vishwakarma, is a daily wager and is too poor to finance his education. Moreover, he has four sisters. A DSP of ours spotted Amit,” the officer said.

The boy has been given an initial financial help of Rs 20,000. The police have promised to finance his education once he gets through to IIT. Lodha clarified that the police were not doing any charity. “Amit was asked several questions pertaining to engineering and he answered them correctly. This proved he has talent. And we are on the lookout of such students,” the officer said.

“Several children in villages are good artists. There are many children who are dedicated to their work and want to study seriously. Some are good in music and arts. The police will identify them and help them nurture their talent. The only request the police is making to them is to help the other underprivileged children once they are established,” Lodha said.