Worrying bout of communal violence in country: President

"The government is committed to dealing with Left-wing extremism in a comprehensive manner. It is pursuing a two-pronged approach of conducting pro-active and sustained operations against extremists and focusing attention on development and governance issues in extremist affected areas," he said.

The country must meet these challenges "head on", he said, adding the actions of "our police forces must respect the human rights of the people and the letter and spirit of our constitution".

Noting that India's first Home Minister had created the All-India Services with great expectations, he said Patel had wanted civil servants to maintain utmost impartiality and incorruptability in administration.

Patel had also advised civil servants not to take part in politics and not involve themselves in communal wrangles, he said.