At least 33 Naxalites, including 17 carrying a cumulative bounty of Rs 49 lakh, surrendered before security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district on Friday, police said.
According to officials, 22 cadres — including nine women — surrendered before senior officers of the police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Later, an additional 11 Naxalites, including two women, turned themselves in before local police authorities, news agency PTI reported.
Sukma Superintendent of Police Kiran Chavan stated that the surrendered cadres expressed disillusionment with the “hollow” and “inhuman” Maoist ideology, as well as with atrocities committed against local tribal populations.
The surrender was also influenced by the Chhattisgarh Government’s ‘Niyad Nellanar (your good village)’ scheme, which promotes developmental work in remote regions, and the new surrender and rehabilitation policy, Chavan said.
Among the 22 Naxalites who surrendered earlier, many were active in the Maad (Chhattisgarh) and Nuapada (Odisha) divisions of the Maoist organisation, PTI reported. The group included Muchaki Joga (33), deputy commander of the People`s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Company No 1 under the Maad division, and his wife, Muchaki Jogi (28), a member of the same unit. Both carried a reward of Rs 8 lakh each.
The others who surrendered included Kikid Deve (30) and Manoj alias Dudhi Budhra (28) – area committee members of the Maoists – each carrying a bounty of Rs 5 lakh.
Badesatti Village Panchayat declared ‘Maoist-free’
Chavan added that seven of the surrendered individuals had rewards of Rs 2 lakh each, while one carried a bounty of Rs 50,000. Many were involved in multiple attacks on security personnel, PTI reported.
The district police, District Reserve Guard (DRG), CRPF, and its elite unit CoBRA played a vital role in facilitating the surrender.
The remaining 11 Naxalites who surrendered were active in Badesatti village panchayat under Phulbagdi Police Station limits. With their surrender, the village panchayat has now been declared Maoist-free, the Superintendent of Police informed.
Of the 11 Naxalites, four carried rewards of Rs 2 lakh each, while one had a bounty of Rs 50,000.
Under the new Chhattisgarh Naxal Surrender/Victim Relief and Rehabilitation Policy-2025, the government has introduced the ‘Elvad Panchayat Yojna’, which sanctions development projects worth Rs 1 crore for village panchayats that support the surrender of Naxalites operating in their region and pass resolutions declaring themselves Maoist-free.
“For the last 15 days, the police have been targeting Badesatti village and were in contact with local panchayat representatives to encourage village-level members like militia and revolutionary party committee of the banned outfit to surrender,” Chavan said.
All the 33 surrendered individuals have been given assistance of Rs 50,000 each and will be further rehabilitated under the government`s policy.
Last year, a total of 792 Naxalites surrendered across the Bastar region, which includes seven districts, including Sukma.
(With PTI inputs)
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