The Bengal police have stepped up security measures in Durga Puja pandals following Intelligence reports that the banned terror outfit of Bangladesh, Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, is planning to carry out subversive activities in the State.
The inputs from the Intelligence agencies become all the more important as immersion of idols of major Durga Puja committees will take place on October 23 when the State Government will organise the Durga Carnival — a procession of idols along the historic Red Road.
According to inputs the JMB terrorists may target North Bengal cities like Jalpaiguri, Siliguri, Alipurduar and Coochbehar. “We are not taking chances on Kolkata also because the city draws crores of people throughout the festive season,” said a senior police officer.
With Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee fixing the day of the Carnival on October 23, the festive season gets extended four days beyond the Vijay Dashmi Day which falls on Friday, the officer said adding the police have further tightened security measures from Mahashtami Day through the Mahanavami Day.
According to sources the JMB activities have already entered Indian territories and are hiding somewhere in North Bengal. “Their target is to cause maximum damage during the Pujas” and on the Vijaya Dashmi Day.
JMB earned notoriety in Bengal following a bomb blast on October 2 in Khagragarh in Burdwan district when two of its terrorists were killed while making bombs intended to be transported to find their targets back in Bangladesh.
Subsequent investigations conducted by the NIA took the lid off a wide JMB network raised in several bordering districts of Bengal including Nadia, Birbhum, Burdwan, Murshidabadand Malda.
“This is no new situation as we receive inputs from time to time from the Centre. In any case the security has been tight throughout the Pujas and will continue to be so this festive season,” said a senior official.
A low-intensity blast near a TMC party office at Nabgerbazar off north-eastern Kolkata killing two persons and injuring at least 10 others had created flutter in the police brass. None has so far been arrested in connection with the case.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated development the Bengal Government had made special ration packages this festive season for the poorest of the poor, officials said.
Subsidised packages of flour, rice, edible oil and sugar is being given to the people coming within the Antodayaya and Special Prioity Programmes — under National Food Security Act, sources informed adding the total number of baneberries this festive season would come to about 3 crore.