Global terror groups off Kerala coastline

Central intelligence agencies have warned the Kerala Government and the State intelligence unit about the reported smuggling of narcotic substances like hashish and ganja through the State with the help of Maoists in Andhra Pradesh and the LTTE.

Recently, an abandoned sack was found in a railway station in Alappuzha district that had led to a police investigation, and according to sources, the police were not able to crack the case. After newspaper reports and inputs from the State intelligence, the Central intelligence agencies had conducted a detailed inquiry into the same and had come to some startling conclusions.

According to the warning from Central intelligence agencies, banned drugs are being cultivated in the forests of Andhra Pradesh with the support of Maoists operating actively there. Once the plants are ripe the drugs are extracted and are transported to Kerala, which presently serves as the hub for the transfer of these drugs to international destinations. The help of the LTTE, which has a sizeable wing operating in the seas, is sought for the international transfer of these drugs.

As per Top intelligence sources , "The cadre of LTTE, which has specific interests along the Kerala coast line, are the major transporters and conduit in the transfer of these drugs. This is seen as a source purely for the sake of generating funds."

Sources also said that once these contraband drugs reached foreign shores their value would multiply and sometimes these fetched a hundred-fold more than what it fetched within India .
The Central intelligence agencies have already informed the State intelligence machinery about the need to act fast and efficiently to counter this threat from an international organisation ganging up with other groups with terror leanings within the country.

Intelligence personnel are also worried about the presence of LTTE on the shores of Kerala. The recent capturing of some Tamil Nadu-based fishermen and a Kerala boat driver by the LTTE has already become a cause for worry for the intelligence agencies.

The agencies are of the opinion that organisations like the LTTE, when they get a foothold, will try to convert that route for conducting further operations within the country.

Kerala with its booming economy and the presence of several players in the emerging market is turning into a destination for the terror groups which could harm the socio-political scenario of the State, sources worry.

A senior police officer, however, said, "There is not much to worry about this disclosure from intelligence agencies. It is their duty to report but the State police has already taken some important measures regarding the same, the contents of which cannot be disclosed to the media."

There were also unconfirmed reports that LTTE activities are going on in certain camps run by the migrant labours from Tamil Nadu. Intelligence sources revealed that most of the antecedents of those staying in such camps had not been properly ascertained.