Joint command set up to nab Veerappan

In the first step towards resuming operations against forest brigand Veerappan, the Karnataka and the Tamil Nadu governments on Monday set up a joint command of the Special Task Forces of the two states. The command will be headed by Tamil Nadu Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) P Kalimuthu.

Disclosing this to the media, Karnataka Director General of Police T Srinivasulu and his Tamil Nadu counterpart K K Rajasekharan Nair said the operational details would be finalised as and when necessary .

Asked whether it would take time for the Tamil Nadu STF to be put on alert since the operations against Veerappan had remained suspended for the last few months, Nair replied that the force was "quite ready".

As for the Karnataka STF, it has already been put on alert on the inter-state border where Veerappan and his gang had been operating.

UNI