K'taka Govt intensifies combing operations across State

Bangalore, Oct 28 (UNI) The Karnataka Government has intensified combing operations across the State in the wake of the arrest of two Pakistani terrorists in Mysore yesterday, Home Minister M P Prakash said today.

Talking to reporters here after attending an official meeting on the naxalite issue, he said ultras might be planning to spread out to Mangalore, Hubli and Dharwad and hence the Government was conducting search operations intensively.

The Minister said some vital information was revealed by the terrorists during interrogation. However, he refused to divulge details, stating that it would not be proper to reveal all the information as it might hamper further investigation and some infiltrators could even escape.

''Mysore is now in an onward march in economic growth and is becoming an IT and BT hub...it's likely to be in the list of terrorists,'' he said.

Mr Prakash said the Government had appointed a committee of officials, headed by Revenue Principal Secretary S M Jamdar, to visit the naxal-hit district of Chikmagalur. The Committee would go to the district in a week and camp there to solve the grievances of the residents on the spot.

He said the Government was making all efforts to solve the naxal issue once and for all in the next few months.

The meeting on the naxal issue, chaired by Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, did not take up the arrest of terrorists for discussion. It would take another day or two to gather more information and a discussion was possible only after that, he added.

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