Rayagada, February 7: As many as 15 hardcore Maoists carrying Rs 1.98 crore bounty, quit the outlawed movement and joined the mainstream by surrendering before police in Rayagada district on Saturday.
They formally surrendered before ADG (Anti-Naxal Operations) Sanjeeb Panda at a special function held at the Rayagada District Police Office here.
Panda said the surrendered cadre will be extended the benefits, including financial assistance, vocational training, skill development to help them reintegrate into society with dignity, under the State Government’s Surrender and Rehabilitation Policy.
All the surrendered cadres belonged to BGN division (Banshadhara, Ghuman, Nagabali) and were operating in Rayagada, Kandhamal, Gajapati and Kalahandi districts.
Of the 15 surrendered cadre, Nikhil and Indu, both State Committee Members and they were carrying rewards of 55 lakh each and include two State Committee Members, one Divisional Committee Member, five Area Committee Members and eight party members. Together they were carrying reward of 1.98 crore.
They also handed over 14 weapons including two AK 47 rifles, five SLR, one INSAS, one sten gun, one .303, four single shots and huge quantity of ammunition to the police. The reward against the arms is about 16 lakh.
Nikhil had joined the outlawed movement in 2004 and he was active in BGN since 2008. After killing of Central Committee Member Ganesh Uike in Kandhamal in December 2025, Nikhil was the next highest-ranking Maoist cadre of the State.
CRPF IG Amitendra Nath Sinha, IG (Operations) Dr Deepak Kumar, Special Intelligence Wing DIG Akhileshvar Singh, Southern Western Range DIG Vishal Singh, Rayagada Collector Ashutosh Kulkarni, Superintendent of Police Swathi, Kandhamal SP Harish BC, Kalahandi SP Nagaraj were present.
So far Nuapada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput and Boudh districts have become completely Naxal free districts.
ADG Panda appealed to Maoists to shun violence and join the mainstream.
