Nine Maoists, Including Four with Rewards, Surrender in Dantewada under Lon Varratu Campaign

Raipur(The Uttam Hindu): Nine Maoists, including four with rewards on their heads, surrendered in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district due to the Lon Varratu (Come Back Home) campaign that is underway there, a senior official said on Friday. The Maoists who surrendered are Anita Potam, a Dandakaranya Communication Team member; Biju Ram Telam of Kamalur, a member of the Line of Sight (LOS) group; and Badru, aka Gorga Kadti, the President of Toynar RPC Jantana Sarkar.

A bounty of Rs 1 lakh was put on each of them by the Chhattisgarh government. Another Maoist who surrendered, Payku Podiyam from Potenar of the RPC Chetna Natya Manch, had a reward of Rs 50,000 on his head. One among those who surrendered belonged to the Dandakaranya Communication Team, one to Kamalur LOS of the Bhairamgarh Area Committee, one to Toynar RPC, three to Potenar RPC, two to Bechapal RPC, and one to Rewali RPC of the Malanger Area Committee.

These persons had been engaged in other activities like digging roads, felling trees, and erecting Maoist banners, posters, and pamphlets during "Naxal Bandh Week". Their return was made easier by top government officials, such as Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, Sundarraj P. (IPS); Deputy Inspector General of Police, Dantewada Range, Kamalochan Kashyap (IPS); Deputy Inspector General of Police (Period), CRPF Dantewada Range, Rakesh Kumar; and some other officials, who were instrumental in persuading them to go back into the mainstream.

The campaign against Left Wing Extremism of Lon Varratu functions under the Rehabilitation Policy of the Chhattisgarh Government. District Police Force and CRPF have been working tirelessly to reach out to the misguided Maoists and persuade them to go back into society. The rehabilitation policy of the Maoists of the government is being extensively publicized in villages, and many high-profile Maoists are surrendering and rejoining mainstream society.

Under this rehabilitation policy, the surrendered Maoists will receive financial assistance of Rs 50,000 along with other benefits provided by the Chhattisgarh government, including skill development training and access to agricultural land.

Since the launch of the Lon Varratu campaign, a total of 984 Maoists, including 236 individuals with government-issued bounties, have surrendered and reintegrated into society.