PATNA The Bihar government has announced cash rewards ranging from Rs 25,000 to Rs 5 lakhs, for anyone giving information about at least 43 top Maoist leaders active in the state.
The cash awards will be on offer for anyone who gets hold of the Maoist leaders - living or dead - or assists the police in facilitating the arrest of the rebels.
“Anyone cooperating with the police in getting hold of the Maoists will be rewarded with cash, as announced by the Bihar government for each of the ultras falling in the rewards category,” ADG (headquarters) Sanjiv Kumar Singhal told HT.
The Maoists leaders on whose heads a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh has been put include Arvind Kumar Singh alias Dev alias Arvind Kumar of Jehanabad, Sandip Ji alias Vijay Yadav of Gaya, Ram Babu Ram alias Rajan of Madhuban and Parvesh Da alias Anuj Da alias Amlesh Da of Hazaribagh (Jharkhand)..
Of these, Arvindji, 53, is a topmost Maoist leader at the national level. A politburo member of CPI-Maoist, he carries a reward of Rs 1 crore in Jharkhand, where he is wanted in around 13 cases. He also carries a cash reward of Rs 40 lakh each in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
{{/usCountry}}Of these, Arvindji, 53, is a topmost Maoist leader at the national level. A politburo member of CPI-Maoist, he carries a reward of Rs 1 crore in Jharkhand, where he is wanted in around 13 cases. He also carries a cash reward of Rs 40 lakh each in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
{{/usCountry}}In addition to these top four, a reward of Rs 50,000 each has been announced on 33 Maoists and of Rs 25,000 each against four Maoists. Interestingly, 21 out of 43 Maoists on the heads of which reward has been put belong to one district - Jamui in south-eastern Bihar.
The police have pledged to keep the names of informers strictly confidential. “In the past, several police informers were killed because the police couldn’t protect their identities. As a result, villagers often shy away from passing on any tip-off to the police,” said a senior officer of CRPF.
“In hilly and forest areas, every villager knows the other by face. So, the residents can easily spot a new face in the area,” said a Shashtra Seema Bal (SSB) officer , explaining how villagers could easily sniff any Maoist activity in their area.
Moreover, he said, central para-military forces personnel were outsiders and they did not have knowledge of the topography of the difficult terrain in which the Maoists usually operated. “So, local villagers play a crucial role in anti-rebel operations,” he argued.
Altogether 10 districts of Bihar are Maoists affected and hundreds of lives had been lost in the state in Maoist violence in the past one decade.The figure includes a large number of security personnel who were targeted by the Maoists.
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CAUTIONARY STEP Police pledge to keep names of informers strictly confidential; say in past, many informers were killed as police couldn’t protect their identities, as such, villagers often shy away from giving any tip-off
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In hilly and forest areas, every villager knows the other by face. So, they can easily spot a new face in the area. Forces also do not have knowledge of topography of Maoists terrains. So, locals play crucial role in anti-rebel ops
An SSB officer