Bhubaneswar, Aug. 10: The government’s anti-Maoist operation received a boost today with the surrender of a rebel commander and his two daughters in Rayagada district.

Meena Palka, 45, an area commander of the Vansdhara division of the CPI (Maoist), and his two teenage daughters surrendered before the Rayagada superintendent of police, Anup Krishna and the Southwestern range deputy inspector general Soumendra Priyadarshi. The trio expressed their desire to return to the mainstream.

Additional superintendent of police, Rayagada, P.K. Bhoi said that Palka, a close associate of Maoist top gun Savyasachi Panda, was involved in a number of criminal cases, including the attack on Chandrapur police station last year. Cases are also pending against Palka’s daughters, Laxmi, 18, and Saraswati, 16, who joined the organisation apparently under his influence.

“Based in Chandrapur, Palka used to plan and execute attacks in a big area. He faces a slew of charges, some of them serious in nature. The girls, too, have been active members of the organisation,” said Bhoi.

The Vansdhara division of the CPI (Maoist), comprising Rayagada, Koraput and Gajpati districts, is headed by Daya, one of the most elusive rebel leaders in the state.

Police, however, claim that rebel activities in the division have gone down significantly following the surrender of top rebel strategist Dunna Keshav Rao alias Azad in Andhra Pradesh a few months ago.

“Besides, we have made several arrests in the recent past, hitting the morale of the Maoists operating in this division. We hope to contain their activities further,” said Bhoi, adding that intensified combing by the CRPF and the state police also paid dividends. As many as 30 companies of CRPF are presently deployed in Rayagada district, a known rebel bastion.