NAGPUR, Nov. 30 -- In a major breakthrough for anti-Naxal operations, 11 suspected hardcore Maoists of the CPI (Maoist) - including Anant alias Vikas Nagpure, a key member of the Special Dandakaranya Zonal Committee - surrendered before the Gondia Police in Maharashtra on Saturday. Superintendent of police, Gadchiroli district, Neelotpal, who oversees the state's Maoist "surrender and rehabilitation" programme, said a substantial cache of weapons was recovered from the cadres. The Maharashtra Police said the surrender marks a major achievement in their operations against Naxal insurgency. According to senior police officers, the group was active across various districts and involved in armed violence, recruitment drives and extortion networks. Police said the cadres will be processed under the state's rehabilitation policy, and further recoveries are expected based on their disclosures. "Together, the surrendered Maoists carried a collective reward of Rs.89 lakh, underscoring their long-standing involvement in extremist activities," said Gorakh Suresh Bhamare, superintendent of police, Gondia district. This is the first major collective surrender by Maoists following the death of top left-wing extremist commander Hidma, whose demise is believed to have created a leadership vacuum within the outfit. Ankit Goyal, deputy inspector-general of police, Gadchiroli Range, said the development reflects the growing success of coordinated policing and outreach efforts encouraging militants to abandon violence. "About seven to eight days ago, the spokesperson of the Maoist MMC zone - covering Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh - expressed his desire to surrender and wrote to the chief ministers of all three states. Acting on this, we established contact with him. He, along with ten associates, surrendered and handed over weapons. The Maharashtra government had declared a collective bounty of Rs.89 lakh on these Naxalites," Goyal said. As many as 114 Maoists, including CPI (Maoist) Politburo member Mallujola Venugopal alias Bhupathi, have surrendered before the Maharashtra Police since January this year. Of these, 61 rebels - who together carried a bounty of Rs.6 crore - laid down arms before the Gadchiroli Police in the presence of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in a single-day mega surrender last month. In October alone, 258 Naxalites surrendered in just two days across Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. In addition, the MMC of the CPI (Maoist) has proposed a coordinated surrender of Naxal cadres but has urged the governments of the three states to suspend anti-Naxal operations until January 1, 2026. In a letter to all three chief ministers, Anant, spokesperson of the MCC, said the authorities must offer security guarantees and a transparent rehabilitation process....