Kolkata, Mar 12 (UNI) The West Bengal Government will shortly augment police force and conduct raids in Nandigram to flush out ''outsiders'' holed up in the strife-torn area, Home Secretary Prasad Ranjan Ray today said.

''The police force in Nandigram is being augmented and new forces are being mobilised. This is necessary because police have to enter the area to apprehend the outsiders,'' he told reporters.

A large contingent of police has been on posting on the fringe of Nandigram for the past two months, hardly venturing inside as part of the official decision to allow time for the high tension in the area to go down.

Nandigram went into flames in January when a major section of villagers, led by the opposition parties, went into rampages in protest against the state Government's move to acquire land for the proposed SEZ for a chemical hub.

Altogether four people were also killed in subsequent clashes between rival political groups while scores of houses were torched and hundreds of people fled for safety.

As intermittent armed clashed continued, the area remained almost inaccessible to outsiders with roads being dug up by members of ''Bhoomi Uchched Protirodh Committee''.

UNI