PM to focus on security, progress in N-E

NEW DELHI/GUWAHATI, JAN 20: In the space of a fortnight Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has turned his attention, after Kashmir, to a ...

NEW DELHI/GUWAHATI, JAN 20: In the space of a fortnight Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has turned his attention, after Kashmir, to a second trouble-torn area: the North-East. However, observers feel it will hardly be smooth-going: the visit precedes New Delhi8217;s ongoing, almost frantic, efforts to rope in more Central forces to oversee smooth elections in Manipur early next month as well as foil the call given by eight militant groups to ensure a complete boycott of the Republic Day celebrations in the region.

Vajpayee accompanied by Home Minister Lal Krishna Advani, Defence Minister George Fernandes, Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha and Army Chief V P Malik will reach Guwahati on Friday to begin his three-day tour in a bid to improve the deteriorating security of the area.

Manipur Assembly elections, due on February 12, already have North Block on its toes. It has arranged for four Army battalions two from the BSF and some from Assam Rifles to prevent violence in the state during elections. 8220;Thedeployment will be completed soon,8221; disclosed a senior Home Ministry official. The process of diverting Assam Rifles troops from Mizoram, Nagaland and other neighbouring areas to Manipur has already started.

Top Ministry officials have also discussed the potential fallout of the R-Day boycott call by the North-East militants NSCN-IM of Nagaland is the only group to have decided against the boycott and the 8220;high probability8221; that the volatile region will be subjected to violence during this period. Senior government officials say Vajpayee is unlikely to announce any more sops for the region.

Instead, he might ask states to observe financial discipline. His meeting with the Chief Ministers and Governors of N-E states on Friday at Shillong is aimed primarily at addressing the security and developmental concerns of the region, including the Bodos8217; demand for a separate state and the five-decade-old Naga problem. North Block officials say 8220;the meeting will discuss financialposition of the states and its effect on the implementation of the plan scheme are to be discussed, besides measures to reduce non-plan revenue expenditure and increase revenue generation8221;.