Patna, Oct. 31: Security was tightened at Beur Central Jail in Patna today, where members of several outlawed outfits are lodged, after the escape of eight undertrial Simi members from Bhopal jail in the early hours.

The eight activists of Students' Islamic Movement of India (Simi) were later killed in an alleged encounter with the Madhya Pradesh police on the outskirts of Bhopal hours after they escaped from the high-security Bhopal Central Jail killing a security guard.

At Beur jail on the southern fringes of Patna, as many as 10 Simi and Indian Mujahideen (IM) members are lodged. All of them are booked for their alleged involvement in 2013 serial bomb blasts in Bodhgaya and Patna's Gandhi Maidan. Among them, four had alleged links with Simi operatives in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.

Those facing charges of terror in Bihar and outside have been identified as Haider Ali, Numan Ansari, Taufiq Ansari, Mujibullah Ansari, Umar Siddiqui, Azharuddin Qureshi, Iftekar Alam, Ahmad Hussain, Fakruddin and a juvenile. One of them, Umar Siddiqui, had hosted a meeting of IM operatives at Raipur, Chhattisgarh, before his arrest in late 2013.

These alleged militants are segregated from the other prisoners and kept in the high-security ward of Beur jail. Those arrangements were further strengthened. "We are alert and have taken all precautionary measures to thwart any sinister design of the terror groups," said a senior official at Beur Central Jail on Monday. Recently after the Uri attack, these 10 had allegedly got into an altercation with security personnel at the jail. Apart special auxiliary police force, the high security prison has been provided additional armed forces and home guard jawans following the jailbreak. "While the outer security is being maintained by the armed forces, internal security has been assigned to jail warders," the prison official said.

Inspector-general (prisons) Anand Kishor wrote letters to all district magistrates and superintendents of police to beef up security arrangements in the wake of the Bhopal jailbreak.

"The district magistrates, who are the custodian of jails in the districts, have been asked to personally assess the security of the jails under their jurisdiction," Kishor said. He swung into action and issued directives to officers on field duty after the Union home ministry sounded a nationwide alert. In a message sent to the state home department, the Union home ministry said the escapees included some former members of Simi, who had earlier fled from Madhya Pradesh's Khandwa jail in 2013.

Within hours' of the jail IG's instruction, deputy inspector-general (central) Shalin held a meeting with officials in Patna to assess jails security, especially around the Beur Central Jail.

"I have issued instructions to the Patna superintendent of police to keep forces deployed outside the jail in readiness and also provide sufficient number of armed forces while the prisoners facing terror charges are being escorted to court," Shalin said.

He, however, hastened to add that there was no any reason to worry. "But the proper security has to be maintained at any cost," he added.

Bihar had witnessed a major jailbreak in Jehanabad in November 2005.