India has increased security on its border with Nepal to keep out Maoist guerrillas fighting to topple the monarchy in the Himalayan kingdom, officials said today.
Border guards and police had been alerted in the eastern states of West Bengal and Sikkim and in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, officials said.
"We are keeping a watch to prevent Maoists from entering," said a state police official in West Bengal's northern district of Darjeeling, which has a 100 kilometre (62 miles) border with Nepal.
He said police were checking hospitals and private nursing homes in the district's main town, Siliguri, to find out if any injured Maoist guerrillas from Nepal had been admitted.
Nepal's King Gyanendra declared a state of emergency today after a spate of attacks by Maoist rebels over the weekend. It was the worst violence since Maoists began their fight for a communist republic in 1996. Authorities said more than 100 people were killed.