In order to deal with Naxalism, the Maharashtra government has extended its Naxal surrender policy date till August 28, 2017. The policy was supposed to end last year in August.
In order to deal with Naxalism, the Maharashtra government has extended its Naxal surrender policy date till August 28, 2017. The policy was supposed to end last year in August. Following a request from the director general of police, the home department sought an approval from the finance department for the extension. Though the government has claimed success of the policy, the state is not completely rid of Naxalism.
“The first Naxal surrender policy was started in 2005 which was amended in 2013. DG police had requested to extend the policy till August 28, 2017. The proposal was sent to the finance department, which was approved,” a notification issued on January 30 by the home department said.
The figures for the last two years show that 48 Naxals had surrendered in 2013, 40 in 2014 and 51 in 2015 as per the policy. The government has claimed to have rehabilitated the surrendered Naxals by giving them Rs 5 lakh each in keeping with the policy. The state even gives them protection to prevent them from getting involved in Naxal activities again or getting harmed by the extremists.
“The Naxals have surrendered and the problem has gone down in the three Naxal-hit areas. We are hoping more positive response for the policy,” an official from the home department said.
Since its inception in 2005, the state has claimed that over 500 Naxals have surrendered reducing the violence in the districts of Gadchiroli, Chandrapur and Gondia. But it is difficult to verify the claims by the government, as these areas are still not devoid of violence completely. In 2015, 18 tribal informants were killed by the Naxals. 10 police informants and, two policemen were killed in 2015 and property worth Rs 1.76 crore was destroyed, said the home department.
Also, there was a demand from finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar in 2015 to consider the nine tehsils in Chandrapur district, namely Chandrapur, Ballarpur, Gondpipri, Rajura, Korpana, Jiwti, Mul, Saoli and Pombhurna as highly sensitive Naxal areas.
