'US ready to offer help in blasts probes if India desires'

Ghaziabad (UP), June 17 (PTI) - As investigators grope in
darkness for clues in various terror attacks in the country,
the United States today said it is ready to offer help in the
probes if India wants.

"We are ready to offer any kind of help to Indian
authorities in investigation of blast cases if government
wants us to do so," Legal Attache of the U.S. Embassy in New
Delhi Kathy Stearman said.

She was talking to reporters on the sidelines of a
conference -- Evidence Recovery, Preservation and Exploitation
Course -- here. The four-day conference is being jointly
conducted by India's Central Bureau of Investigation and
America's Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The offer from the U.S. came at a time when CBI and
central intelligence agencies are yet solve any serial bomb
blast cases, including those which struck Delhi, Malegaon,
Jaipur, Mumbai and the Samjhauta Express explosion.

Stearman said joint efforts of Washington and New Delhi
were necessary to curb transnational crimes like terrorism.

"Through such efforts, not only the US or India, but the
whole world would be benefited," she said addressing the
delegates.

Stearman said many more joint security initiatives would
be taken by both countries in the near future.

In his address, C.B.I. Special Director M. L. Sharma said
India lacked expertise in crime scene management and if it was
destroyed, nothing could help investigators probe a case
properly.

"As terrorists go hi-tech, many states in India continue
to be ill-equipped in the area of cases," the CBI official
said.

Sharma said modern technology enabled terrorist groups to
plan and target large numbers of people over a broad canvas,
presenting a tremendous challenge to law enforcement agencies.

"Use of RDX and other high explosives in the blasts have
added a worrisome dimension and made the job of investigating
agencies more difficult," he said.

Sharma said one of the most important methods of beating
terrorism was effective investigation leading to prosecution
and exemplary conviction of terrorists.

"Therefore, the role of the investigators becomes all the
more important. I believe that the present training programme
will enable you all to hone your investigative skills for
handling post-blast investigations in the years to come," he
said.

F.B.I. special agent Michael Dehncke said both India and
the U.S. had faced terrorists attacks in the past and it was
very important for both countries to share their expertise and
experience to deal with the emerging global scenario.

"We have many things to learn from each other's expertise
and experience," he said.

The programme is being attended by 30 officers from
different police organisations of the country and five
instructors from F.B.I. PTI