varanasi the inaction of naxal groups in the region for past nine years supports the claims of the police to have ended this menace in the state however the cops have still not succeeded in combating the terror of naxalites which is keeping the tourists as well as picnickers away from those spots that can become hotspots in chandauli district it is fact that naxalites now avoids entering the area but their terror still exists here and people reaching here prefer to leave the area before the sunset said a forest employee standing near chandraprabha trijunction where a crpf unit also camps permanently even some crpf personnel who were surprised to see toi team there at the time of dusk started suggesting to return instead of heading towards naugarh passenger van drivers at chakia revealed that no conveyance could be found to head towards chandraprabha or naugarh after 5 pm rajesh a taxi driver said after spending some time in varanasi many tourists including foreigners ask us to take them to this region as they remain aware about the sites of naxal affected districts through the brochures of tourism department or information available on internet but we deny to take them here as we can also fell in trouble local panchayat member rahul kharwar who was enjoying sunset said male members of about 30 families of naxal affected areas are staying in other cities to earn livelihood while 20 visit neighbouring districts for the same reason dailly rest of the families depend on locally available employment opportunities which are almost negligible or farming kharwar said that when naxalism was nonexistent in this region the area witnessed impressive footfall of outsiders for picnic which enabled the locals to make money but now rarely anybody comes to this region and those who visit the area prefer to return as soon as possible rajesh added these ground realities are sufficient to reveal that the strategies of government machinery had succeeded in keeping the ultras away from the region but the success in spreading a message among outsiders that there is no threat for them here is absent the emergence of naxal problem was noticed in naugarh area after 1995 after which it spread in mirzapur and sonebhadra districts by 2000 after attacks on forest department offices employees officials and looting of slrs at khoradih pac camp in mirzapur the worst and biggest carnage in the state took place when 16 pac and police personnel were killed in a maoist landmine blast just twoandahalf km away in the jungle from the main gate of the chandraprabha sanctuary in november 2004 but after this attack the police and paramilitary forces did not allow the naxal groups to enter the territory of state through bihar jharkhand chhattisgarh and madhya pradesh borders but even this success had failed to bring the past glory back when people used to flock here to enjoy the jungle beauty particularly in rainy and winter seasons when the waterfalls are full of