COMMONWEALTH 2010...need ur views .. - Page 6

The Centre has instructed Karnataka to thoroughly screen foreigners arriving in the state, especially in Bangalore, in the wake of reports about terror threats to the 19th Commonwealth Games to be held in New Delhi in October.

There had been an increasing number of advisories from the ministry of home affairs (MHA) about the possibility of terror elements sneaking into Karnataka, to target the games, intelligence sources.

Intelligence officials in Bangalore received an advisory a couple of days ago specifically instructing them to check all foreigners arriving in the city, sources said.

"The terror alerts have been received by Karnataka and Kerala, besides Delhi," an intelligence officer, who did not want to be named, said. "We cannot rule out the possibility of a 26/11-like attack during the games," he said.

On November 26, 2008, 10 terrorists had stormed Mumbai and had held the city hostage for almost four days. It later transpired that an American, David Headley, and his Canadian associate Tahawwur Hussain Rana, were among the perpetrators of 26/11 attacks.

"The ministry has asked us to set up a separate cell for CWG participants," a senior police officer with the immigration department said. "We have also received the list of people who might stop over in Bangalore and we will have to check their antecedents and also ensure that they have authorised entry permits," the officer said.

Immigration officials said they had been conducting regular meetings over the past six months to discuss security for the games.

The latest MHA advisory was completely contradictory to its earlier instructions, the intelligence officer quoted earlier said. Earlier, the ministry had advised officials at international airports all over the country, including Bangalore, to welcome participants and foreign invitees to the games with "open arm".

"The earlier instructions said that they should be treated as VIPs since they would be our state guests, they should not be questioned, and that all facilities they demanded should be made available to them without any hesitation," the officer said.

But the ministry made a volte-face after several international agencies warned that there was a possibility of terrorists targeting the games. It put out a list of potential targets and advised states like Delhi, Karnataka and Kerala to deploy additional forces in certain locations.