Ahead of the Tuesday conclave of Chief Ministers on internal security, the Centre has presented a grim picture by admitting that cross-border terrorism has spread to the hinterland and infiltration, in comparison to the same period last year, has trebled.

Although the Home Ministry has tried to underplay the threat to internal security, the agenda paper for the conclave, to be addressed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, points to the rise in grenade attacks in Kashmir, increase in the number of casualties in Naxalite violence and no respite in insurgency in the North-East.

Stating that cross-border terrorism has spread to the hinterland, the Government has admitted that Pakistan still continues to aid and abet terrorism and terrorist groups, particularly Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed who are out to target India with the help of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

The total number of infiltration have doubled from 21 (January-July, 2005) to 50 (January-July, 2006) while the number of infiltration foiled have declined during the same period. So has the number of militants killed in Jammu and Kashmir.

Cross-border infiltration has nearly trebled from 170 (January-July, 2005) to 476 (January-July, 2006), clearly indicating that neither has the Government been successful in containing the menace nor has Pakistan tried to dismantle the terror infrastructure across the border. The number of grenade attacks in Jammu and Kashmir(January-July 2006) total an alarming 176, a manifold jump from last year.

While the Centre has spelt out the political steps it has taken to forward the peace process in Kashmir, the result evidently is missing on all counts. The government initiatives mentioned in the paper are the two round-table conferences and the efforts to bring the Hurriyat separatists into the political process.

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