Overview

• In Jagdalpur, the Union home minister addressed Bastar Dussehra events and the Muria Darbar, ruling out talks and urging Maoist cadres to accept a “lucrative” surrender-and-rehabilitation policy.
• He fixed March 31, 2026 as the deadline to end Naxal violence and warned that the CRPF and Chhattisgarh Police would respond to any attempt to disrupt peace.
• He released ₹606.94 crore as the 20th Mahtari Vandan installment to nearly 65 lakh women and promised ₹1 crore for each village officially declared Naxal-free.
• He launched a rural bus service linking about 250 villages on 34 routes and set 2031 targets for round-the-clock power, government schools and primary health centres in every village.
• Officials cited intensified operations and a surge in defections, including 103 surrenders in Bijapur, with data noting 985 surrenders, 1,177 arrests and 305 insurgents killed over 13 months.