63 Maoist cadres surrendered in Bastar, Chattisgarh

In a significant boost to anti-Naxal operations and peace efforts in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, 63 Maoist cadres, including 36 carrying bounties totalling Rs 1.19 crore, surrendered before security forces on Friday.

The surrender ceremony took place at the District Reserve Guard office in Dantewada.

The cadres, comprising 18 women and 45 men, were active in Darbha Division, South Bastar, West Bastar, Maad Division



and parts of neighbouring Odisha.

Among them were seven with Rs eight lakh bounty each, seven with Rs five lakh, eight with Rs two lakh, eleven with Rs one lakh and three with Rs 50,000, a police official said.

The mass surrender has been attributed to the ongoing ‘Puna Margam’ campaign, meaning Rehabilitation to Rejuvenation, launched by Dantewada Police to encourage Maoists to abandon violence and join the mainstream.