75 Maoists surrender in Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam, Mar 31 (ANI): Over 75 militia members belonging to Korukonda Area Committee (KAC) of the Maoists voluntarily surrendered before police on Saturday in Andhra Pradesh's Visakhapatnam city.

One of the surrendered ultras, Korra Nagesh said that they were in constant fear of attack by the Maoists and the police as well.

"The Maoists had threatened us that if we do not work with them then they would kill us. On the other hand, police had also announced that if we do not surrender then our life would be in danger. We were caught between the two. We are poor and we were afraid of being attacked by the Maoists," said Nagesh.

Most of the militia members who surrendered were poor and hailed from the interior villages of Rallagedda, Kappa Gondi, Mulakothuru and Gunjiveedhi of the state.

Speaking to mediapersons, Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Visakhapatnam range, Soumya Mishra stated that the Maoists had their vested interest, as they didn't want the villages to be developed by the government.

"Maoists have a vested interest in not having these areas developed. Every time, whenever, a road is being constructed, they say that it would be used by the police to pursue them. So, that is why they are now burning JCBs. The other day when the villagers themselves fell at their feet and begged them not to burn the JCBs which were brought all the way from Narsipatnam, they burnt them," said Mishra.

She further said that most of the people from the poverty-stricken villages have been forced by the militia members to join the group.

The Andhra Pradesh government has, however, initiated many schemes for the Maoists who have surrendered with their own consent in order to give them a better life.

The government, besides granting lumpsum amount, also helps the surrendered Maoists to rehabilitate themselves.

The Maoist insurgency has gripped nearly a third of the country in its violent tentacles, spreading into the interiors of 20 of India's 28 states. (ANI)