Jabalpur: Taking a cue from the last month's (September) terrorist strike at Akshardham temple in Gujarat, the Madhya Pradesh government has decided to upgrade its dreaded 'Hawk Force' with the latest weapon technology and commando operations to meet any eventuality, according to state Home Minister Mahendra Boudh.

"We want to strengthen our Force to thwart any such (like Akshardham temple) attack," Boudh said in Jabalpur on October 11 while speaking to reporters after reviewing the passing out parade of the 83rd batch of the sixth battalion of Special Armed Forces (SAF) of the state police.

He said that 450 personnel, drafted originally for naxalite combat operations, would also be imparted a specialised training of commando operations equipping them with modern weapons, including choppers, from November.

The 'Hawk Force', having personnel below the age of 35 years would be part of the elite group for a period of five years and they would be given an additional salary of 70 per cent of their basic for the period as an incentive.

PTI