Nine Maoists carrying a cumulative bounty of Rs 47 lakh surrendered before police in Chhattisgarh’s Dhamtari district on Friday.
With this, the Raipur police range has been declared free of Naxal presence, senior officials confirmed.
Inspector General of Police (Raipur Range) Amresh Mishra said the cadres laid down arms before senior officers, citing disillusionment with Maoist ideology, hardships of forest life, and the influence of the state government’s surrender and rehabilitation policy. However, he noted that Maoist influence continues in the Bastar range and parts of Rajnandgaon district, where several cadres remain active.
The surrendered group included seven women and belonged to the Nagri and Sitanadi area committees and the Mainpur Local Guerrilla Squad (LGS) operating under the Dhamtari–Gariaband–Nuapada division of the Odisha state committee of Maoists.
Key Surrendered Cadres
- Jyoti alias Jaini (28) – Secretary, Sitanadi area committee (Rs 8 lakh bounty)
- Usha alias Balamma (45) – Divisional committee member (Rs 8 lakh bounty, resident of Telangana)
- Six cadres – Ramdas Markam (30), Roni alias Uma (25), Niranjan alias Podia (25), Sindhu alias Somadi (25), Reena alias Chiro (25), Amila alias Sanni (25) – each carried a Rs 5 lakh bounty
- Lakshmi Punem (18) – carried ₹1 lakh bounty
The cadres surrendered two INSAS rifles, two SLRs, one carbine, and one muzzle-loading gun.
Wider Context
- With this surrender, 189 Maoists have laid down arms in Chhattisgarh so far in 2026.
- On January 19, nine Maoists with a bounty of Rs 45 lakh surrendered in Gariaband.
- On January 15, 52 Maoists — 49 of them carrying a collective bounty of over Rs 1.41 crore — surrendered in Bijapur.
- In 2025, more than 1,500 Maoists surrendered across the state.
- The Centre has set a March 31 deadline to eliminate Left Wing Extremism nationwide.
This latest surrender marks a significant step in the state’s ongoing efforts to dismantle Maoist networks and restore peace in affected regions.
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