Naxalism and government steps to tackle it will come under the scanner at the highest level, with the National Security Council meeting to discuss the issue on August 2. Members of the National Security Council and top officials from the Union Home Ministry and intelligence agencies will be present.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who once described Naxalism as the single-biggest security threat to the country, is likely to chair the meeting, official sources said. The high-level meeting comes amid rising concern that the Naxalites have moved into new states. These include Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.

At a meeting earlier this year, the Centre had sensitised these states about the presence of Naxalites in their areas. The Centre has since begun sharing intelligence inputs with these states.

The Centre has a five-tier structure in place to deal with the problem. These include an Empowered Group of Ministers headed by Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil; a standing committee of chief ministers of Naxal-affected states; a Coordination Centre headed by the Union Home Secretary which has chief secretaries and DGPs of 13 affected states; a Task Force headed by the Special Secretary (Internal Security) in the Union Home Ministry; and an Inter-ministerial group headed by Additional Secretary (naxal management) in the MHA.