Police arrest Medha Patkar. Picture by Samir Mondal

Purulia/Lalgarh, July 3: Director-general of police Bhupinder Singh today indicated that security forces would focus attention on Maoist-infested areas of Purulia now that the situation in Lalgarh was under control.

“Action will take place soon in Purulia,” Singh said, asked if operations would be conducted in Purulia after the recent attacks in the Balarampur and Barabazar police station areas.

He, however, did not elaborate when and how security forces would move into Purulia. “Lalgarh is peaceful now. There is no problem there.”

On June 24, chief secretary Asok Mohan Chakrabarti had said during his visit to the police camp near Bandwan that the government was aware of the Maoist strikes in Purulia. “We have chalked out a strategy. You will get to see it soon.”

Singh reached Kuchia in Bandwan around 11.30am from Lalgarh in a helicopter, along with A.S. Gill, the CRPF director-general.

At the CRPF camp in Kuchia, the two DGs held a meeting with senior officials of the state and central forces.

Before flying to Bandwan, they visited Lalgarh where they reviewed operations by the security forces with DIG (Midnapore range), Praveen Kumar, and West Midnapore superintendent of police, Manoj Verma.

In another development, a group of 14 social activists, including Medha Patkar and Gopal Menon, were arrested this morning on their way to Lalgarh from Calcutta. They were released on personal recognition bond this evening.

A police force stopped the cars carrying Patkar and others at Debra and asked them not to go to Lalgarh where Section 144 is in force. But Patkar insisted they would and squatted on National Highway 6 when they were arrested.