NSG commandos played a key role in freeing the Mumbai Taj Mahal hotel of terrorists. (AP)

The state government is looking for 1,200-1,500 acres, of which 100 acres must be near the airport, for the proposed National Security Guard (NSG) hub in Calcutta.

“Home secretary Ardhendu Sen will meet senior officials on January 19 and go through the list of sites where the NSG hub can be set up,” said state chief secretary Ashok Mohan Chakrabarti on Wednesday. He refused to elaborate on the list.

The condition set by the Union home ministry that 100 acres has to be allotted close to the airport has put the state government in a fix, according to sources. So Sen has called the district magistrates of North and South 24-Parganas, West Midnapore and Burdwan to the meeting.

“In case we fail to find land near the airport, we will offer the home ministry the option of setting up the hub near the airforce bases in Kalaikunda or Panagarh. The hub has to be set up by March,” said Chakrabarti.

The hub will replicate the facilities at the Manesar training centre of the NSG, added the chief secretary. Similar hubs will also be set up in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai.

The state government wants to simultaneously set up two training camps for Calcutta police and Bengal police.

“The city police training camp will come up in or around the city, while the Bengal police facility will come up in Salboni. Specialised arms training will be provided at the camps. A terror-combat module is also being contemplated,” a home department official told Metro.

The Salboni camp will train a batch of commandos as Special Security Guard (SSG), modelled on the Combat Battalion for Resolute Action (Cobra).“The SSG will be like the Rapid Action Force (RAF) with flexibility to be flown to a trouble spot on a short notice. The SSG will be armed with a wide range of hi-tech assault weapons and latest communication systems,” added the home department official.