THEBUSINESSBYTES
BUREAU
RAYAGADA,
FEBRUARY 7, 2026
In a significant boost to Odisha’s
intensified campaign against Left Wing Extremism, as many as 15 hardcore
Maoists formally surrendered before Sanjeeb Panda, Additional
Director General of Police (Anti-Naxal Operations), at a special ceremony held
at the District Police Office in Rayagada on Saturday.
The surrender marked a decisive moment
as the Maoists voluntarily renounced violence, laid down their arms and handed
over a large cache of sophisticated weapons to the police, symbolising their
return to the mainstream of society.
Addressing the gathering, ADG Sanjeeb
Panda said the mass surrender reflected the steadily weakening grip of extremist
ideology in the region and growing confidence among misguided youth in the
government’s development-oriented and people-centric approach. He underlined
that sustained and coordinated operations by the Special Operations Group
(SOG), District Voluntary Force (DVF), CRPF and BSF have substantially eroded
the Maoist base across southern Odisha.
Assuring full institutional support,
the ADG said all surrendered cadres would be extended benefits under the State
Government’s Surrender and Rehabilitation Policy, including financial
assistance, vocational training and skill development, to enable them to
rebuild their lives with dignity and self-reliance.
Among the surrendered Maoists were
Nikhil and Indu, both State Committee Members, each carrying a reward of ₹55 lakh. The group comprised two State Committee Members,
one Divisional Committee Member, five Area Committee Members and eight party
members, with a cumulative reward of ₹1.98 crore on their heads. They
surrendered 14 weapons, including two AK-47 rifles, five SLRs, one INSAS
rifle, one Sten gun, one .303 rifle, four single-shot firearms and a huge
quantity of ammunition. The reward linked to the surrendered arms alone is
estimated at around ₹16 lakh.
The group belonged to the BGN division
— Banshadhara, Ghuman and Nagabali — and had been operating across Rayagada,
Kandhamal, Gajapati and Kalahandi districts. Nikhil, who joined the Maoist
organisation in 2004 and became active in the BGN division in 2008, had emerged
as the next highest-ranking Maoist in the state following the killing of
Central Committee Member Ganesh Uike in Kandhamal in December 2025.
The surrender programme was attended
by several senior officials, including Amitendra Nath Sinha, IG CRPF; Dr Deepak
Kumar, IG Operations; Akhileshvar Singh, DIG SIW; Vishal Singh, DIG Koraput; Ashutosh
Kulkarni, Collector, Rayagada; Swathi, SP Rayagada; Harish BC, SP Kandhamal;
and Nagaraj, SP Kalahandi.
Highlighting the success of sustained counter-insurgency and development efforts, the police said districts such as Nuapada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput and Boudh have already been declared completely Naxal-free.
Appealing to remaining Maoists to abandon violence, ADG Panda urged them to surrender and rejoin society, assuring that the government and police would provide all possible assistance under the surrender and rehabilitation policy to help them start a new chapter in life.
