Raipur, May 27 (PTI) Chhattisgarh Gramin Bank has opened a branch in Pamed, a remote village in Bijapur district, once considered a Maoist stronghold, officials said on Tuesday.

With this, residents of more than 50 villages will have access to financial services and won't have to travel nearly 100 km to Awapalli for basic transactions, an official from the public relations department said.

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Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai virtually inaugurated the bank's branch on Monday and described it as a significant move in the region's journey from extremism to empowerment, an official statement said.

"The area was feared as the base of Maoists' battalion No. 1, but it is now witnessing the setting up of banks, hostels, and other facilities. This is the new Bastar — confident, connected, and committed to change," the release quoted the chief minister.

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Sai said, "This is not just the inauguration of a bank. It is the state's commitment to the stability and welfare of people, not with force, but with trust, services, and stability."

The chief minister also inaugurated a tribal girls' hostel, built at Rs 1.62 crore, to strengthen educational access for young women in the region and a Nutrition Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) to address child malnutrition in surrounding tribal areas, the release said.

Sai reiterated that the Naxal menace will be eliminated by March 2026.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)