By IANS,
Agartala/Guwahati : A high security alert has been sounded across the restive northeast region after the serial bomb blasts in New Delhi, officials said here Monday.
Security forces have been put on maximum alert across the militancy-hit region and additional paramilitary troopers and state security personnel deployed to thwart possible strikes by extremists, an official told IANS.
Accompanied by bomb disposal and dog squads, security forces launched search operations since Sunday at the airport, hotels, bus terminus, major markets and national highways besides crowded and mixed populated areas, they added.
“We have asked the Border Security Force (BSF) to maintain strict vigil along the international borders to prevent any unwanted elements from entering across the border,” said Nepal Das, Tripura police spokesman.
On Saturday, five bombs went off in three important shopping areas in New Delhi, killing at least 21 people and injuring 100.
In Manipur, a powerful bomb was exploded at the private residence of legislator T. Hangkhanpao at Churachandpur town, 175 km north from state capital Imphal Sunday.
“Barring damage to some properties in the adjoining areas there was no casualty,” said Y. Joykumar, Manipur director general of police.
The law maker, belonging to the National People’s Party (NPP), was not at home when the blast occurred.
Joykumar said: “In a separate development, three live bombs were also recovered from different places of Imphal and defused by the bomb squad.”
The bombs were found near the private residences of state government officials.
BSF inspector general P.K. Mishra said: “We have asked our troopers to be on extra-alert to prevent infiltration from across the border.”
“Thermal imagers and other modern gadgets have been installed at vulnerable areas to help the frontier guards in detecting movement of people, specially militants and subversive activists, along the India-Bangladesh and India-Myanmar border,” Mishra, in-charge of the Assam-Meghalaya frontiers, told journalists at Shillong.
“We cannot take chances with such terror acts and that’s why our men have been put on extra alert,” the BSF commander said.
According to a central home ministry report, 22 militant outfits are operating in Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, Nagaland and Mizoram.
“Of the 22 outfits, 13 rebel groups have been declared ‘unlawful associations’ under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967,” the report says.