Insight By Sunil Kumar

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ March 11th 2010
The Sri Lankan Prime Minister’s hindsight about theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ insurgentƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Tamil Tiger terrorist outfit (LTTE)ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ put downƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in the not too distant pastƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in Sri Lanka re -grouping in Tamil Nadu India,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ gets the ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Indian AuthoritiesƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ agitated according to recent reports butƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ TheƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  S L Prime Minister’s fears seem to have a ring of truth to it as a news item appearing todayƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in the Hindu( posted below)ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ seems to indicate. It isƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  therefore deemable as notƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ entirely speculation or paranoia on the part of the Sri Lankan PM.
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It has howeverƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ made The Hon Prime Minister re-thinkƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ some of hisƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ speculations in response to protestations by IndiaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ while there may be no visible pointers towards a realistic terroristƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  training operation based in Tamil Nadu surfacing tangibly as yet, neither has he made direct allegationsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ aboutƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ possibleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Indian support towards this as there seems to have been some misinterpretaton on the part of India which needs to be set straight for the record.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ What he has implied is the distinct possibility of the LTTE regrouping if the Indian authorities paid no heed and the related ramifications which could result, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ so there’s no real need for India to get aggravated about it and better off ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ taking it in stride on the basis that prevention is better than cure knowing what the Tamil Tigers are capable of, going back in time.
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To make the Prime Minister’sƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ suggestion more plausibleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ a special correspondent’s report in the Hindu News of IndiaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ reports that KeralaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  has tightenedƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ surveillance andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ its vigil on the Tamil Nadu BorderƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  to curb possibleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ LTTE activities where intelligence inputs indicate thatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ cadres tried to set up camps in the Idukki forestsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  of Kerala the State bordering Tamil Nadu. The report continues that the Intelligence Bureau is keeping a vigil on the movement of suspected persons in the border areas of Tamil Nadu after it received information that members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam had reportedly tried to set up camps in the forest areas near Idukki district where highly placed, very credibleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ sources have alsoƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ said there were chances of setting up such camps in the forest areas and adjoining villages as it would give them cover, addingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  however that Sri Lankan Tamils could be easily identified in Tamil Nadu by their dialect and a dead giveaway.

The chances of using airports in Kerala for transitƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ have beenƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ monitoredƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in the same mannerƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ thatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sri Lanka clamped down onƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ similar LTTE activities where theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  news sources have alsoƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ said the airports could be used by certain overseas sponsors of the group to keep channels of communication open. Idukki’s forest areas bordering Tamil Nadu in the Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR)ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ could be used by the cadres to re-group which brings to bear shades of their operations in Killinochi and Mullattivu in similarly forested areas during the height of their activities in Sri Lanka.
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It is estimated that about 1,000 Sri Lankan Tamils live in Pachakkanam Gavi inside the PTR where they had been repatriated as part of a rehabilitation pact signed by the then Sri Lankan Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike and her Indian counterpart Shri Jawarhalal Nehru. They work in the cardamom plantations of the Kerala Forest Development Corporation Ltd.
Intelligence sources haveƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ said a large number of repatriates had migrated to Tamil Nadu and that there was a remote chance of communication between them and members of the LTTE and by this token what the Sri Lankan Prime Minister was suggesting needs to be viewed objectively by the Indian authorities rather than protesting over it and regretting later about a turn of events even hypothetically which should notƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ have been tolerated and preventableƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ .
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Kerala tightens vigil on T.N. border to curb LTTE activities

Special CorrespondentƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  For The Hindu

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Intelligence inputs say cadres tried to set up camps in Idukki forests