Bastar, Nov. 8 -- Celebrating Diwali with security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Bastar on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the region's transformation from a Naxal stronghold to a land now celebrating freely, asserting that strong internal security is significant for border defence.

PM Modi visited the CoBRA Operations Base in Karanpur. The base served as a training centre and launch pad for anti-Naxal operations in Bastar and Abujhmad.

Drawing a parallel to national defence, he emphasised that the security personnel maintaining internal security are just as vital as those guarding the borders.

Adressing the gathering, PM Modi said Bastar is an area where Naxalism once held sway and where development is now flourishing....