KOZHIKODE: Security has been beefed up in the strife-torn areas of Marad village in the wake of the second anniversary of the May 2 massacre.

An additional two platoons comprising 30 police personnel will be deployed for duty at Marad for a week.

They will be drawn from the Malabar Special Police and the Armed Reserve Camp. As of now, two battalions of 30 police personnel under the command of an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) or a Deputy Superintendent of Police (Dy.SP) assisted by four Sub Inspectors have been posted there.

Unlike last year the police have no plans to carry out raids or take out a route march of the Rapid Action Force (RAP). ``The existing police force has been monitoring the situation. It's quite normal at Marad,'' said the Kozhikode City Police Commissioner, H. Venkatesh, today.

Around 350 constables and officers had been posted in the area after displaced Muslim families were rehabilitated in November 2003.

The officers were on a 24-shift duty till the first anniversary. A thorough mapping of the area had been done and two vehicle check posts set up.

The North Zone Inspector General of Police, M.N. Krishnamurthy, said all precautionary measures would be taken at Marad. A striking force would always be ready at the disposal of senior officers.

Raids or any other measures will be done only if needed, he said. As part of tightening security, Mr. Krishnamurthy said checking of vehicles would continue for a week.

Meanwhile, the Hindu Aikya Vedi has decided to hold a public meeting at Maidan at 5.30 p.m. on May 2 to observe the `martyrdom' of nine persons who had been killed at Marad on May 2, 2003.

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