A former Salwa Judum vigilante who builds roads in shadow of Maoists in Chhattisgarh. Pramod Rathore’s reputation as a member of the now-disbanded Salwa Judum vigilante group that fought Maoists with state patronage is, however, an advantage.
He is perhaps a contractor like no other in the country. On his shoulder rests the Chhattisgarh government’s ambitious plans of bringing development to the Maoist heartland by building roads — a project that is opposed by insurgents and has caused bloodshed.
It is the army of workers of Pramod Rathore, the 46-year-old private contractor, who is building both the Injiram-Bheji and Dornapal-Jagargonda roads across south Sukma, which once completed is expected to usher in modern amenities to the doorstep of tribals and choke the Maoists of local support.
But building the roads is fraught with danger and Rathore moves with gun-toting bodyguards. The Maoists are hell-bent on not letting the roads get built and the two stretches have been the site of some 45 fierce encounters resulting in 45 deaths so far.
Read more of this in the report by Ritesh Mishra from Dornapal, Sukma in Hindustan Times...
