New Delhi, Oct. 4: Bent on hunting down those behind the multiple blasts in Nagaland and Assam, the UPA government looks unlikely to pick up the talks offer by insurgents in Assam and concentrate on controlling the situation in the states instead.

Union home minister Shivraj Patil said in Guwahati the doors for unconditional talks with militants were always open, but indicated that at this point such talks were not on the top of his priority list. It was more urgent to find out who was behind the dastardly blasts that claimed over 50 lives, he said.

Sources suggest the Centre?s reluctance to enter into a dialogue with the insurgents was because it was beyond the focus of Patil?s visit. His statement that the doors for talks would always be open was a matter of policy, but the present moment was not right to get into talks, officials said.

The Assam government had last week offered to call a ceasefire from October 16 provided the Ulfa stopped all violence and had asked it to respond within a fortnight.

A caller, identifying himself as Ulfa commander-in-chief Paresh Barua, had yesterday claimed responsibility for some of the blasts in Assam and said they were the outfit?s answer to Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi?s truce call. But it had declared it would consider a proposal for talks with the Centre if the government came out with a ?written commitment to discuss the sovereignty issue?.

However, getting into direct negotiations with the Ulfa ? the outfit behind blasts in four places in Assam and on the radar of security agencies investigating the Dimapur explosions ? looks far from the Centre?s mind.

?Talking is less important in the current situation than controlling the violence.... We are concentrating on what has happened over the last few days,? a senior official said.

Over the last two days, Patil has been visiting blast sites in Dimapur and Dhubri and holding meetings with chief ministers and government officials so that a long-term plan to restore peace could be put in place. He has also asked security agencies to step up vigil and not take anything for granted.

The Union home ministry is not entirely convinced of the insurgents? intentions to enter into a meaningful dialogue. Sources said terror outfits could not go around exploding bombs and talking peace in the same breath as that amounted to armtwisting which the Centre would not tolerate.