Bhubaneswar/Berhampur: With less than a week remaining for Centre’s deadline to eliminate left-wing extremism (LWE) nationwide, the Odisha police on Wednesday declared Rayagada and Kalahandi — two of the state’s three Maoist-affected districts — free from insurgency, leaving only Kandhamal awaiting the Naxal-free tag.“Naxal influence had already been eliminated in Nuapada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput, Boudh, Balangir, and Bargarh. Rayagada and Kalahandi have now been added to the list following the surrender of Maoist state committee member Sukru and his four associates. They had been active in the Kandhamal-Kalahandi-Rayagada axis,” said ADG (anti-Naxal operations) Sanjeeb Panda on Wednesday in Kandhamal where the five Maoists, including Sukru surrendered at a function.According to Panda, only a small patch in Kandhamal remains under Maoist presence, with about 8–9 lower-rung rebels, mostly from Chhattisgarh. Anti-Maoist operations have been stepped up in the district by the special operations group, district voluntary force, CRPF, and BSF, with the aim of making Odisha completely free of Naxals by month-end,” Panda said, praising IGP (operations) Deepak Kumar, DIG (special intelligence wing) Akhileshvar Singh and Kandhamal SP Harisha BC for the sustained operations.He urged the remaining cadres to surrender and avail govt’s rehabilitation benefits.Police disclosed that Sukru (49) and his aides — Sanjay Rawa (28), Roni Patami (26), Kuni Majhi (26), and Banila Krusham (25) — carried a collective bounty of around Rs 83 lakh. They surrendered five firearms, including an AK-47, along with a large cache of ammunition.Panda noted that the killing of central committee member Ganesh Uike in Kandhamal in Dec 2025, followed by sustained operations, demoralised Maoist ranks and triggered the latest wave of surrenders. In the past one and a half months, about 40 Maoists, including some top leaders, have surrendered.On Feb 7, 15 cadres of the Bansadhara-Ghumusar-Nagavali (BGN) division surrendered in Rayagada; on March 11, 10 cadres from the Kalahandi- Kandhamal-Boudh-Nayagarh (KKBN) division laid down arms in Kandhamal; and on March 15, 11 cadres from the BGN division surrendered in Kalahandi. “This reflects the steadily weakening influence of the Maoist movement in Odisha,” Panda said.
