Ranchi, May 10:Simdega Superintendent of Police Rajeev Ranjan Singh, is perhaps now one among the few police officers who has had the rare honour of being felicitated at a public function in a neighbouring state.
He was given this honour for effectively improving law and order in the bordering areas of Jharkhand and Odisha.
Yesterday, Singh was chief guest at a public function organised in Birmitrapur to celebrate a part of the Kalinga or Orissa Mahotsava . His Sundargarh counterpart, R. Prakash and Rourkela counterpart Aniruddha Prasad too were present on the occasion.
Leading the celebrations, Birmitrapur MLA George Tirkey on record admitted that the Simdega SP had been made the chief guest at public demand and sought his proactive support for the integrated growth of the area. He added that people were indebted to him.
"Over 10,000 persons had gathered at the public function. Apart from the public submission during the addresses, many commoners too during informal interactions admitted that the rebel outfits, especially PLFI and Pahari Cheetah had been giving them sleepless nights. That it was also because of our (Simdega police) efforts, normalcy has been restored in the area to considerable extents," commented Singh while talking to The Telegraph.
Birmitrapur is a sub-division of Sundargarh district in Orissa. It is located very close to Orissa-Jharkhand border. Rourkela is the nearest town, which is located about 35km away. The area is also known for its rich limestone and dolomite reserves and several industries too are based here.
"People living in Birmitrapur often come to different parts of Simdega district for different types of works, including marketing and medical treatments. The rebel outfits, including CPI(Maoist), PLFI, Pahari Cheetah and some splinter groups and been giving them sleepless nights. Some hardened criminals too had made their life miserable. Our sustained efforts in proper coordination with Orissa police succeeded in restoring normalcy in the areas bordering two states," Singh boasted.
He also went on adding that the Pahari Cheetah group has virtually been wiped out and that other rebel outfits too have been pushed to tight corners. And, the combing operations were in full swing.
"Our fight is on. It is heartening to see that commoners in the neighbouring state too have begun appreciating our efforts. It is a great honour to me and my boys," Singh signed off.
