NLFT attempt to plant explosives on highway foiled

AGARTALA: Police averted a sabotage attempt ahead of Independence Day when they engaged a group of NLFT militants in an encounter in Dhalai district on Thursday afternoon. According to police sources, a group of about 9-10 NLFT militants led by Athara Babu Halam was planning to plant explosives on National Highway 44 on or before Independence Day. The bid was foiled when a team of Dhalai district police led by additional S P Nagendra Debbarma, acting on a tip off, raided the remote Khagendra Roaja Para of Ambassa sub-division. "We had specific information about militants' movements in the area and, accordingly, we sent out three police parties, accompanied by Tripura State Rifles (TSR) personnel and led by senior officials, on a coordinated hunt. I was leading the group that came across the militants about 400-450 metre north of Khagendra Roaja Para," said Nagendra Debbarma. He said as the combined party of police and TSR personnel were entering the area they saw a militant. When the raiding party challenged the militant, his comrades-in-arms hiding in the nearby jungle opened fire. The police-TSR combine immediately retaliated, forcing the militants to flee. "We then launched a massive search operation to hunt down the militants. But they managed to escape as the area was densely forested. We suspect there were nine to ten militants," Debbarma said. Police later came to know that the group was led by Athara Babu Halam, a first generation NLFT militant responsible for several attacks including the Kamalpur UBI robbery on November, 1995. He hails from Jamthung village of the district. Another officer said the Athara Babu-led NLFT militants had plans to plant explosives on NH-44 between Assam and Agartala ahead of Independence Day. But due to the police action, they are now on the run. Of late, there has been a sudden spurt in NLFT offensives in various parts of Dhalai district. Besides, attempts are also on to recruit youths from the tribal villages as cadres. Sources said the militants seem to have become highly active before the Independence Day celebration. In view of the threat posed by them, massive security arrangements have been across the state, with intensified force deployment, tightened surveillance and bomb squads being pressed into service. Border vigil has also been stepped. Bordering areas Gandacherra, Raishyabari, remote areas of Chhailengta and some parts of Khowai subdivision have been put on round-the-clock surveillance. In view of the sudden spate of cross-border movements of militants in the area, at some places, apart from BSF, TSR personnel too have been deployed to guard the frontier, the officer added. On Thursday night, the TSR nabbed five tribal youths with country-made firearms from Murabari under Kalyanpur police station. The youths were from Gayanfangbari, police sources said. "At least three NLFT groups are holed up in Bangladesh just across the border; they regularly sneak into Indian territory and move around in the interior parts of Dhalai district. One group is led by Athara babu, and the two others by Bomtong, aka Ananda Hari Jamatia and Lakshilung Halam. And all them are desperate to make a high-impact attack," said a senior officer in Agartala. The NLFT militants are now trying to extort money from villagers. Lakshilung kidnapped eight villagers from Dhalai recently and took them to Bangladesh where they are still held captive for ransom. During monsoon, the forest cover in the area becomes thick, so militants can move freely in without fear of being caught. While verdant foliage gives them the required cover, the jhum fields spread in the hilly regions provide them food. In fact, unlike other times, they do not need to enter any village for food. They can get vegetables and fruits from the jhum fields up in the hills and stay in the hills. They steer clear of nearby villages, which are all virtually covered by security forces like TSR or Assam Rifles. Besides, in the absence of villages and habitations across large tracts of the hilly region on both sides of the border, the NLFT hideouts - which are constantly moved - remain untraced by the security forces of both the countries.