Shillong, Nov. 30: Meghalaya will raise more Special Operations Teams (SOTs) and activate the newly formed Special Protection Unit (SPU), trained by the National Security Guards, to be prepared for any terrorist strikes and blasts, including the Mumbai-type situation.

As majority of the SOT men from the 3 battalion of the IRB were taken to Delhi to guard the VIPs a few months back, Meghalaya is experiencing a shortage of security personnel.

A police official today said with the number of the SOT men falling short, police have started selecting trained personnel from the second and fourth police battalions to be included in the SOT after proper training.

However, some NGOs are aggrieved over the decision of the Meghalaya home department to send the third IRB for VIP duty in Delhi.

“There is already a rise in the militant activities in East Garo Hills and West Khasi Hills and we need more SOT personnel in the state rather than sending them to guard the VIPs in Delhi,” the official said.

Moreover in the context of terror attacks like that in Assam and Mumbai, their services were needed more in Shillong, a vulnerable area, than in Delhi. To fill up the vacuum, Meghalaya police have formed the Special Protection Unit, comprising 20 armed police personnel, trained by the NSG.

Formed in 2000 and aimed at fighting militancy in the state, the SOT was first led by the current superintendent of police (Shillong), Claudia Lyngwa. Under her leadership, the SOT had success in containing militancy, especially in the fight against the Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) in the state.

“The whole idea of forming a special unit came about when I was the commandant of the first battalion of Meghalaya police,” Lyngwa said today. From among the 120-armed police men selected from the 3rd battalion of the IRB, after rigorous training by the NSG instructors, 44 commandos were finally chosen to be part of the SOT.

They were also sent outside the state for special armed and physical training besides the curriculum training in North East Police Academy at Umiam.

From 2001 to 2002, the assault of the SOT against the HNLC paid dividends and they were finally neutralised.

While the state government is strengthening the SOT, the Special Protection Unit, consisting of 20 members, is kept on alert to tackle any eventuality in the context of the recent serial bomb blasts in Assam. Though the basic training of both SOT and SPU is the same, the number of SPU is limited to 20 and their duty will be specific, unlike the SOT who are deployed at present to fight insurgents.

“We want to use the SPU only for specific operations in case of any emergency situation,” a police official said.