Operation against Maoists to be intensified: Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee

Resolving to counter the danger posed by the Maoists in the wake of the attack on a Mumbai-bound train in Jhargram, West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today said operations against the Naxals would be intensified."The Maoists have done this work. Operation against them will be intensified and all out efforts be made to free the state and the country from this danger", he told reporters here.The chief minister said it was a difficult job but "we will confront them".Expressing strong resolve to counter the Maoist danger, Bhattacharjee said they had fought the Naxals in the sixties and seventies and defeated them politically. They again raised their heads from outside the state like Andhra Pradesh."We are opposing them politically and administratively", he said.Asked whether there was any intelligence failure, he said that they (Maoists) have given a call for 'black day' and accordingly police force was reorganised. "But we had no idea that they will resort to such dastardly crime against innocent people", he said.Although the press meet was organised in the run up to May 30 civic poll, Bhattacharjee said he would not like to take any questions regarding any other (political) matters. A minute's silence was also observed in memory of those killed in the incident. The chief minister said that the state government and the railways were working together to rescue the passengers. The injured were admitted to hospitals in Midnapore and Kharagpur.Bhattacharjee said he would go to Kharagpur and Midnapore while some ministers, including finance minister Ashim Dasgupta, rushed to the spot.DGP Bhupinder Singh also visited the site and was looking into the incident, he said that probe was now on to find out what happened.