Bijapur (Chhattisgarh) [India], May 10 (HBTV): A total of 24 Naxalites, including 14 carrying a combined reward of INR 28.50 lakh, surrendered before the police in Bijapur on Monday, according to the Bijapur Police.

'Today (April 28), 14 Naxalites with a total reward of INR 28.50 lakh surrendered, and a total of 24 Naxalites surrendered in Bijapur,' said Bijapur Additional Superintendent of Police Chandrakant Governa.

Since January 1, 2025, a total of 213 Naxalites involved in various incidents have been arrested, 203 have surrendered, and 90 have been killed in separate encounters in the district, he added.

Each surrendered Naxalite was provided with an incentive cheque of INR 50,000 as part of the government’s rehabilitation programme encouraging integration into mainstream society.

On Sunday, the District Reserve Guard recovered several Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and Naxal-related materials from the Salhebhat forest in Chhattisgarh.

Superintendent of Police (Dhamtari), Suraj Singh Parihar, stated that pipe bombs, cooker bombs, tiffin bombs, and other IEDs were recovered from the forest area under Khallari police station limits in Mahasamund district.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, two security personnel sustained minor injuries in separate IED-related incidents in Bijapur district.

The first incident took place on the night of April 24, when a Special Task Force (STF) jawan sprained his ankle due to the impact of an IED explosion. A second blast occurred on April 26, injuring a District Reserve Guard (DRG) jawan. Police officials confirmed that both jawans are in stable condition and receiving medical treatment. They are expected to return to duty soon.

Since the formation of the BJP government in Chhattisgarh on December 3, 2023, security forces have gunned down 365 Naxal cadres in separate encounters and arrested 1,382 Naxals. Additionally, 2,306 cadres have abandoned the red movement and joined the mainstream, encouraged by the government’s surrender and rehabilitation policy.

(ANI)