Narayanpur: Twenty-nine Naxalites, including seven women, surrendered in Narayanpur district of Chhattisgarh on Wednesday, a senior official said.
The cadres belonging to the Kutul area committee of Maoists turned themselves in before the police, Border Security Force (BSF) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) officials here citing disappointment with the "hollow" Maoist ideology and growing internal differences within the banned outfit, Narayanpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Prabhat Kumar said.
They also said they are influenced by the development work being carried out in the Maad area of Narayanpur, including the rapid construction of roads, and said they wanted to lead a normal life henceforth, he said.
The surrendered cadres were active as members of Janatana Sarkar, militia, Chetna Natya Mandli (CNM - a cultural wing of Maoists) and lower rungs of Maoists, he said, terming the development as a major success for security forces.
With this, 71 senior and lower cadres have surrendered so far in the district since January 2024. During the same period, more than 60 Maoists were killed and 50 arrested, he said.
"The benefits of the government rehabilitation policy under which houses and jobs are being provided to surrendered Naxalites, have attracted them. Police's 'Maad Bachao Abhiyan' has given them new hope. We appeal to all Naxalites that the time has come for them to come out of the misleading ideology of outsiders and now it is the time to hand Maad back to its original residents where they can live a normal life without any fear," Kumar said.
All the surrendered Naxalites were provided financial assistance of Rs 25,000 each and will be further rehabilitated as per the government's policy, he added.
