“After announcing the package for the guerrillas willing to surrender, we received a press note from the home department. But, we are yet to receive a formal notification. Only after an official gazetteed notification can we release posters in villages and start negotiating with the cadres to lay down arms,” said West Midnaore District Magistrate N S Nigam, adding that some Maoist cadres are likely to avail of the scheme.

Senior police officers echo Nigam’s views. “From our intelligence network, we have got the names of squad members willing to surrender, if offered the scheme. But, we cannot ask them to surrender for lack of any official document enumerating the details of the scheme,” said an officer.

“The state government is slow in implementing the scheme. If the government had issued the notification, we could have started preliminary work on the scheme,” said a senior West Midnapore district official.

West Midnapore Superintendent of Police Manoj Verma said: “ We were told by the home department that the notification would be sent by Monday. But, we are yet to get any official communication on the same. Without the official order, we are not in a position to even publicise the scheme among villagers.”