Bihar police to strengthen intellegence network

To prevent a repeat of the Naxal attack in Nawada, the Bihar police have started the exercise of strengthening its intelligence network at the grassroots level, reports Ramashankar.

To prevent a repeat of the Naxal attack in Nawada, which claimed the lives of ten policemen, the Bihar police have started the exercise of strengthening its intelligence network at the grassroots level. This is also in keeping with the centre’s suggestion to improve the intelligence network and share inputs with Naxal-affected states.

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With this end in view, the state police headquarters is now planning to rope in more and more people, including retired government officials for the job, on the lines of the Special Auxiliary Police (SAP). Sources said the police officials, who retired from service recently, would be appointed purely on contract basis for the purpose.

As per the plan, those policemen would be given preference in selection who had served in Naxal-affected districts for long or were given intelligence gathering assignments in remote areas.

“These officials don’t need additional training. They will have to go through a refresher course only,” a senior police official said.

He observed that had the intelligence sleuths given inputs to the officials concerned about the Naxals’ plan at Mahuliatand village in Kauwakol police station area in Nawada district, the incident would have been averted. “The incident is a clear case of intelligence failure,” he said.

The police official said the Bihar police already share intelligence information with their counterparts in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, the two worst-affected states. As a result, over a dozen top-ranking leaders of the Naxal outfit had been arrested in Bihar and Jharkhand, he pointed out.

Apart from sharing intelligence inputs, the two beighbouring states have been carrying out intensive combing operations in areas falling under Jamui, Nawada, Aurangabad, Gaya and Rohtas districts in Bihar and Giridih, Palamu, Latehar, Garhwa and parts of Hazaribagh districts in Jharkhand.

“The director generals of police of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are likely to visit Bihar to chalk out a combined action plan against the Naxalites,” said the police officer.