Geeta Narote, a former Maoist cadre from Bastar, has cleared her Class 10 State Open School exam after dropping out in Class 6 following her father’s killing. Known as ‘Dr Champa’ for her work with Maoist medical team, the 36-year-old now wants to pursue nursing. She is among eight surrendered cadres from Bastar division who cleared the examination
For years, Geeta Narote carried a rifle as a Maoist cadre in the forests of Bastar, Chhattisgarh. Today, the 36-year-old is holding something very different in her hands, a pen and books as she works towards building a new life. Narote, who was known as ‘Dr Champa’ within the outlawed organisation because of her work with its medical team, has cleared the Class 10 State Open School examination. For her, the result is more than just a qualification. It is a chance to return to a path she had left many years ago.
“I am very happy that I got an opportunity to study again. I always wanted to study. I now want to pursue further studies and become a nurse,” Narote told news agency PTI.
Father’s death forced her to leave school
Narote originally comes from Gurekasa village in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district. She was the eldest of four sisters.
She had studied until Class 6 before dropping out. Her father was killed by Maoists, after which Narote had to take responsibility for her mother and younger sisters.
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Her village was located in a forested area where the Maoist movement was active. According to Narote, Maoist cadres would regularly hold meetings there, while villagers were expected to provide them with food and water.
She said there was nobody else to look after her family, which forced her to leave school.
Her difficult circumstances later brought her into conflict with the law. Within a year of leaving school, she was arrested on charges of being a Maoist supporter and spent two years in jail.
After her release, she said she feared being arrested again on similar charges.
“I joined the movement in 2004,” she said.
‘Dr Champa’ in Maoist ranks
Narote eventually became active in the Maoist organisation and worked as a divisional committee member.
She was part of its medical team and worked in remote areas, where she treated people and provided medical assistance. It was during this period that she came to be known as ‘Dr Champa’.
Her years with the organisation also meant that her formal education remained unfinished. That changed after she surrendered along with other Maoist cadres.
Narote was among 210 Maoists led by senior cadre Rupesh who surrendered in Jagdalpur in October last year.
After leaving the organisation, she got an opportunity to resume her education. She and other surrendered cadres approached the Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, and other officials about their wish to study.
According to Narote, the authorities agreed to support them.
Rs 50,000 assistance helped cadres return to studies
Under the government’s surrender policy, the former cadres received Rs 50,000 each. Narote said some of the money was used to buy books and other study material.
A former Maoist cadre, Setu alias Shyam, who had worked as a teacher within the organisation and surrendered with the group, also helped them prepare for their examinations.
The candidates followed a timetable and practised model question papers from previous years.
That preparation eventually paid off.
Narote is among eight surrendered cadres from Bastar division who cleared the Class 10 open school examination held in August this year. The results were declared last month.
Eight surrendered cadres clear Class 10
The other successful candidates are Yadgiri Kondghatla alias Bhaskar, Santosh Anchla alias Sannu, Ramdhar Kashyap, Madkam Dulla and Navru Poyam, who appeared from Jagdalpur.
Arjun Payam alias Vasu appeared from Bijapur, while Ramji Gavde appeared from Kanker. Their stories are different, but several of them had left school at a young age and later joined the Maoist movement.
For Narote, clearing Class 10 is only the beginning. She wants to study further and eventually take up a nursing course.
“I have experience in medical work and want to do a nursing course and serve people,” she said.
Santosh Anchla wants to study and start a business
Santosh Anchla alias Sannu, 31, is another surrendered cadre who cleared the examination. A native of Gundul village in Kanker district’s Koyelibeda area, Sannu was an area committee member of the Maoist organisation.
He dropped out of school after Class 2. He said teachers were not regular and, as the eldest of four brothers, he had responsibilities at home.
Sannu joined the Maoist movement in 2008 after being influenced by its cultural wing, Chetna Natya Manch.
“I wanted to sing, dance and give speeches,” he said.
Within the organisation, he eventually learnt to read and write and later worked as a teacher, teaching young cadres basic mathematics and Hindi. After returning to mainstream life, Sannu decided to resume his own education.
He now wants to continue studying, start a business and take up farming.
Ramdhar Kashyap also returns to education
Ramdhar Kashyap, 34, from Kotmeta village in Kondagaon district, had also dropped out after Class 2. He said Maoist cadres would visit his village and speak to villagers about the proposed Bodhghat dam project on the Indravati river. They told villagers that the project would submerge their villages.
Kashyap said these discussions influenced his decision to join the Maoist movement.
He surrendered in March this year.
Like Narote and Sannu, he had always wanted to study.
“In the organisation, I learnt to read and write. I am very happy that I cleared the examination,” he said.
Police say education can help surrendered cadres rebuild lives
Narote, Sannu and Kashyap are currently staying at Triveni Parisar, a police facility in Jagdalpur, officials said.
Bastar Superintendent of Police Shalabh Kumar Sinha said surrendered cadres were provided assistance after they expressed their desire to appear for the Class 10 open school examination.
He said they were being given the necessary facilities under the government’s surrender and rehabilitation policy.
“Education is a key factor in the development of a person,” Sinha said.
According to the SP, education can help surrendered cadres connect with society outside the organisation and open opportunities for self-employment and jobs.
He also said the achievement of the eight candidates could encourage other surrendered cadres to take up education.
A new life beyond the forest
For Narote, returning to education has also meant seeing a world she had known little about during her years with the Maoist organisation.
“It is completely different and there is a lot to see and understand here,” she said.
She said that after leaving the organisation, she could see for herself what life outside it was like.
“Earlier, I had one kind of experience and now it is different,” she said.
The Class 10 result has therefore given Narote a new goal. The woman once known as ‘Dr Champa’ now wants to exchange her years of conflict for a career in healthcare.
Her immediate target is further education. Her longer-term ambition is to become a nurse and use the medical experience she gained in the forests to serve people in a very different setting.
(With agency inputs)