Bhubaneswar/Phulbani (Odisha), Mar 25 (PTI) Odisha has lost 239 security personnel in the three-decade-long fight against Maoists but the insurgency is in the final stage with the surrender of five red rebels, including wanted Naxal Sukru alias Kosa Sodi, who carried a bounty of Rs 55 lakh on his head, a senior officer said on Wednesday.
Additional Director General of Police (Anti-Naxal Operations) Sanjeeb Panda made the statement while accepting the surrender of five red rebels, including CPI(Maoist) state committee member Sukru (49), at the Police Reserve Ground in Phulbani, the district headquarters of Kandhamal.
“The state has lost 239 security personnel during the three-decade-long fight against Naxals. We pay our highest tributes to the martyrs… The fight against Maoists is nearly over. At present, only around eight-nine Naxals, all hailing from Chhattisgarh, are active in small pockets of Kandhamal district. We are optimistic that they will surrender before March 31,” Panda said.
The Maoists laid down an AK-47 rifle, a self-loading rifle, two .303 rifles, a single-shot gun and a large quantity of cartridges.
Sukru, a native of Malkangiri district, was carrying a bounty of Rs 55 lakh on his head, while the four others carried a total reward of Rs 10 lakh. They will receive a compensation of Rs 83 lakh.
The group was operating in the KKBN (Kandhamal-Kalahandi-Boudh-Nayagarh) division of the banned CPI(Maoist) outfit. Sukru had joined the organisation in 1997.
“After the killing of CPI(Maoist) central committee member Ganesh Uike in Kandhamal in December 2025 and continuous and sustained operations, the Maoists were demoralised and decided to surrender and join the mainstream,” Panda said.
The officer said the surrender of the five Maoists will boost anti-Naxal efforts.
He said all the surrendered Maoists will be extended the benefits of the state government’s surrender and rehabilitation policy.
The ADG said anti-Naxal operations will be intensified in Kandhamal district in the coming days.
He said Nuapada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput, Boudh, Bolangir, Rayagada and Kalahandi districts have become completely Naxal-free.
“We are committed to making Odisha Naxal-free by March 31, 2026. I appeal to other Maoists to shun violence and surrender before the police,” he added. PTI COR AAM ACD
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