Guwahati, Nov 23: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today denied there was any intelligence failure that led to Ulfa's violent attacks on Biharis in the state. "We have intelligence reports of the possibility of attacks by the militants (Ulfa) and we are taking security steps accordingly to prevent them", Gogoi told here.

"But no one can say the exact place and time when the extremists will strike", he said denying that there was any intelligence failure in Assam where the Ulfa militants have targetted and killed over 50 Biharis in cold blood so far. The state government was taking all measures to prevent violence in the state following the attack on Assamese train passengers in Bihar on November 11 and 12, he added.

For their security and to instill confidence among the Bihari community in the state, the chief minister said "in the vulnerable remote areas where the concentration of Bihari population is sparse, we have brought them to the relief camps that have a security apparatus". The brick kilns, which were the targets of the Ulfa as large numbers of Bihari labourers were engaged there, had also been ordered to be shut down as a precautionary measure.

In view of the Bihar Motor Transport Federation deciding against sending trucks to Assam, Gogoi said, "If necessary we will requisition trucks to bring in the essential goods".

Bureau Report