Ten cadres of the Communist Party of India (Maoist), including a State Committee member along with A $A reward of Rs 55 lakh was handed over to the Kandhamal police on Wednesday.
The surrender took place at a formal ceremony organized by the Odisha Police at the Reserve Police Ground in Phulbani, where cadres also laid out arms and ammunition in front of senior police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) officers.
Among those who surrendered were Sanu Botham alias Neto, a state committee member of the KKBN division, and Santai Salam alias Anuba, a division committee member of the same division. Two district committee members, Lakshmi Madhvi alias Sangeeta and Sunil Tailam, were also among those who surrendered, along with six party workers identified as Manjula Poonam alias Silpa, Rampati Oyam alias Jamuna, Ganesh Kunjam, Susheela Dhodi, Sarita Kohodam and Choddi Yogi alias Rajni.
Sanjib Panda, Additional Director General of Police (Anti-Naxal Operations), said that all the 10 cadres were from Chhattisgarh and surrendered along with 10 firearms along with other ammunition. “The Maoist cadres carried a combined reward of Rs $“Rs 1.15 crore,” Panda said on the sidelines of the ceremony.
Nabarangapur, Balangir, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nopada and Boudh districts have already been declared Naxal-free, Panda said. “We now have a target of making the border areas of Kandhamal, Kalahandi and Rayagada districts Naxal-free. As many as 25 Maoists are believed to be active in these areas. We appeal to them to renounce violence and join the mainstream of society,” he said.
The surrender comes days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who spoke at the CISF’s 57th Renaissance Day function in Cuttack, reiterated the Centre’s March 31 deadline to rid India of Maoist violence.
Shah said the Modi government had made a “pledge” to defeat the insurgency and that the dream of a red corridor from Tirupati to Pashupati “will be completely defeated.” He credited the CISF and other security forces for their contributions in states including Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Telangana.
Under the state government’s rehabilitation and reintegration policy, each of the 10 surrendered cadres was immediately given temporary relief. $25,000. They will additionally get housing under Antyodaya Gruha Yojana, a one-time marriage incentive $25,000 and free registration in short-term skill development programmes. A monthly salary of $10,000 will be paid during the training period, lasting up to three years, to help ease their transition to civilian life.
