108 Maoists surrender in Bastar

In a historic surrender, 108 Maoists in Bastar yielded, bringing a ₹3.95 crore bounty and a major weapons cache, reflecting growing disillusionment with their ideology.

At least 108 Maoists carrying a cumulative bounty of ₹3.95 crore and a large cache of weapons surrendered in Bastar district on Wednesday, police said, calling it the largest-ever seizure of cash and valuables from a single Naxal hideout.

Surrendered Naxalites hold copies of the Indian Constitution during a surrender ceremony in Chhattisgarh’s Jagdalpur on Wednesday. (PTI)

The cadres, from the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC) of the banned CPI (Maoist) outfit, turned themselves in at Jagdalpur, Bastar district’s headquarters. Inspector general of police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P said intelligence from the surrendered cadres led to the largest seizure of cash and valuables from a single Maoist hideout in the history of anti-Naxal operations in the country.

The bounty included ₹3.61 crore in cash, one kilogram of gold valued at about ₹1.64 crore, and 101 weapons, including AK-47 rifles, INSAS rifles, SLRs, light machine guns, .303 rifles and barrel grenade launchers, dealing a major blow to the Maoists’ military capability, police said.

Key surrendered cadres included divisional committee members (DVCMs) Rahul Telam, Pandru Kovasi and Jhitru Oyam from West Bastar division; Ramdhar alias Biru from East Bastar division; and Mallesh from North Bastar division. Others were Muchaki, commander of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) battalion, and Kosa Mandavi, a DVCM from the Andhra-Odisha border area.

In an official statement, the Chhattisgarh Police said, “Today, March 11, 2026 (Wednesday), at the Bastar Division headquarters in Jagdalpur, a total of 108 Maoist cadres of the DKSZC (Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee) will join the mainstream of society under the initiative Poona Margem: From Rehabilitation to Rejuvenation. Notably, based on the information provided by cadres who renounced violence and joined the mainstream, along with other intelligence inputs, the largest-ever dump recovery in the history of India’s anti-Naxal operations has been made.”

Chhattisgarh deputy chief minister Vijay Sharma, who holds the home portfolio, said six of the surrendered cadres were DVCMs carrying a reward of ₹8 lakh each, while others included three company platoon committee commanders, 18 platoon party committee members, 23 area committee members and 56 party members.

District-wise, 37 Maoists were from Bijapur, 30 from Dantewada, 18 from Sukma, 16 from Bastar, four from Narayanpur and three from Kanker, he said.

Police said the large-scale surrender reflected growing disillusionment with Maoist ideology and the impact of intensified security operations in the Bastar region. Several cadres were influenced by the state government’s “Poona Margem – Rehabilitation to Rejuvenation” initiative and decided to return to the mainstream, officials added.

According to police data, 2,714 Maoists have surrendered in Chhattisgarh in the last 26 months, including 2,625 in Bastar division between January 1, 2024 and March 9, 2026. Union home minister Amit Shah has set March 31, 2026, as the deadline for eliminating Naxalism from the country.

Ahead of the government’s deadline, there are just two Central Committee members of the CPI (Maoist) who are still wanted. Even as of January 1 last year, the proscribed party’s Central Committee had 21 members, 19 of whom had surrendered or were killed in gunfights. At its peak during the early 2000s, the CPI(Maoist) had 40-45 CC members.

Most para forces to be withdrawn by March 2027

Meanwhile, Sharma added that most paramilitary forces deployed in the Bastar region are likely to be withdrawn by March 31, 2027, following the proposed end of Maoism in the state.

Replying to a discussion on the budget demand proposals of departments under him in the legislative assembly on Tuesday, Sharma said the government has set March 31, 2026 as the target date for ending armed Maoism.

“March 31, 2026 has been fixed as the date for the end of armed Maoism, and it has also been decided that the forces will start returning by March 31, 2027. Some may go back even earlier,” Sharma told the House.

He said discussions have been held to set March 31, 2027 as the timeline for withdrawal of central forces, though the schedule may vary slightly. “After that, all the central forces would also leave,” he added.

Sharma also informed the House that the police department has been allocated ₹7,130.48 crore under the revenue expenditure head and ₹590.53 crore under the capital expenditure head in the main budget, taking the total allocation to ₹7,721.01 crore.

He said ₹38 crore has been earmarked for fixed deposits and vocational training for surrendered Maoist cadres under the central rehabilitation policy to support their rehabilitation.

Earlier, participating in the discussion, former chief minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel said everyone wants Maoism to end and peace to prevail in the region.

He noted that the government has repeatedly said Maoism would end by March 31, 2026. “Only 21 days are left for March 31. We hope that after that the withdrawal of paramilitary forces will begin,” Baghel said.

Baghel also suggested that a special session of the assembly should be convened on March 31 to celebrate the end of Maoism in the state, adding that after Maoism ends, Bastar should primarily benefit the local people.

Following the discussion, Baghel demanded a division of votes on a cut motion, which was rejected after voting, with 37 votes against it and 24 in favour. The assembly later passed the budget demand proposals for the departments held by Sharma.