In a major breakthrough in the Bihar hostage crisis, the alleged mastermind behind the abducted of four policemen has reportedly been arrested, along with several other Naxal leaders. Reports said the arrests took place from the jungles of Jamui.

Pradeep Kumar, who is believed to have masterminded the abduction of the four policemen and subsequent murder of one of them, was nabbed during a combing operation in the forests. However, there is no news about the fate of remaining three policemen.

The arrests came a day after the bullet-riddled body of Lucas Tete was found in the Simratali forests of Lakhisarai district, about 150 km from the state capital Patna, five days after he and three of his colleagues were abducted by Maoists.

Maoists had earlier claimed to have killed Sub Inspector Abhay Kumar Yadav. However, the body turned out to be of Lucas Tete and not of Abhay Kumar Yadav.

There was no confirmation about Yadav or the other two- Rupesh Kumar Sinha and Ehsan Khan- who had been kidnapped Sunday after a six-hour gunfight in Lakhisarai that left seven policemen dead.

Villagers said Maoists had left a handwritten poster near Tete's body, warning that they would not talk with the government any more.

Additional Director General of Police (Headquarters) PK Thakur told reporters in Patna that combing operations had been intensified in Lakhisarai, Jamui, Banka and Munger districts.

Another official added that scores of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers were scouring the forests, hoping to find a clue to the whereabouts of the other hostages.

Police officials said the state government had requested three more helicopters from the Border Security Force (BSF) as one helicopter was already engaged in operations against Maoists since Tuesday.

Tete's body was first taken to a nearby police station and then to the Lakhisarai district headquarters from there to Patna, where his wife Pyari and three teen daughters- Anjela, Majula and Neelam- had arrived from their home in Ranchi.

Maoists had claimed to have killed Yadav around 4pm Thursday, six hours after their second deadline expired at 10am. The killing took place following a decision by a 'jan adalat'- a kangaroo court- a Maoist spokesperson said.

Maoists claimed Sunday's gunfight and kidnappings were in retaliation for the killing of their leader Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad and a journalist on the night of July 1-2 in Andhra Pradesh.

The rebels had said the four kidnapped policemen would be killed unless eight jailed Maoist leaders were released.

The Maoists have also warned the Bihar government of more attacks if the operations against them did not stop immediately.

A senior police official said in Patna that the government seemed in no mood to bow to the Maoists' demands after Tete's killing.

Tete's killing - a year after another police officer from Jharkhand, Francis Induwar, was abducted by Maoists and beheaded - has led to deep concern in New Delhi.

Maoists, said a Union Home Ministry official, were aiming to 'demolish the morale' of security personnel.

‘It is a disturbing trend. It is a move to demolish the morale of the forces,’ the official said.

He said the Central government was viewing the Bihar situation against the backdrop of the coming Assembly polls later this year.

In the latest diversification of matrimonial websites catering to a diverse clientele with customised websites for different communities, a site dedicated to defence personnel has been launched today.

‘This is a fantastic idea, I am extremely happy that a matrimonial website for defence personnel has been launched. But it need not be focused only on defence personnel it should be accessible all,’ said Air Chief Marshal (Retd) A K Dayalu while launching the website.

The site 'Defence Matrimony' is a venture by the Consim Info Pvt limited which already runs several successful websites like Bharat matrimony.

‘Lifestyle of army men is different from civilians, they have their own set of values. So it's probably a nice idea to help them find someone of the same background,’ said J Mahadevan, Business Head Consim India Pvt Limited.

A few years ago people would not disclose even if they met their partners online but that trend has changed as more people are finding their life-partners online and are no longer shy about it, he said.

This new matrimony site has a registration fee of Rs 100 and offers free services to war widows and defence personnel who are physically challenged.

'Defence Matrimony' seeks to address the needs of defence personnel who neither have the time nor the opportunity to meet potential partners through the usual channels, Mahadevan said.

Tirupati temple of Lord Venkateswara, which is known for its generous pilgrims, is all set to get a massive Rs 52,000 crore insurance cover soon.

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, the trust which manages the temple, has decided to buy insurance cover on the jewellery of Lord Venkateswara, valued at around Rs 52,000 crore, a newspaper said today.

Tirupati Balaji temple, which sees close to 70,000 devotees everyday, receives around USD 2 million every month as donations besides other revenue streams like ticket sales, sale of confectionaries and auctions.

The temple is said to have 20 tonnes of gold and diamond jewellery and some of them date back to the 12th century.

Last year, one Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy had offered a diamond-studded crown worth Rs 42 crore to the God.

However, insuring the wealth of Tirupati Balaji seems to be a mammoth task, the newspaper added, as ‘the premium can be quite high considering the risks involved and antique characteristics of the assets’.

If the deal goes through, Tirumala will surpass ONGC which has a cover of USD 26 billion.

An as yet unidentified body of a policeman has been found in the Lakhisarai jungles of Bihar with a chilling note from Maoists saying, ‘we have killed a hawaldar since our colleagues were not released. If our colleagues are not released we will kill other cops as well.’

A new deadline set by the Naxals holding policemen hostage to demand the release of their jailed comrades, ended at 10am today.

Forty policemen were outpowered by more than 200 Naxals in Bihar's Lakhisarai district, 150 km east of Patna on Sunday. Seven cops were killed and the Naxals left the battle with four policemen, Abhay Prasad Yadav, Mohammad Ehsaan, Rupesh Kumar Sinha and Lokus Tete.

On Thursday, as the deadline for their demands ended, the Naxals called local TV channels to declare that one of the four policemen they had abducted had been killed as the government had failed to respond. They did not say how they had murdered Abhay Prasad Yadav, a Sub Inspector in his 30s.

Soon, sources in the Intelligence Bureau in Delhi confirmed Yadav's killing.

It is not yet clear whether the body found today is that of one of the kidnapped cops.

The Naxals warned on Thursday that the other three policemen with them would be safe only till 10 am on Friday, unless eight Naxal leaders were released from jail.

Sub-Inspector Abhay Yadav is survived by his father, four children, and his wife who was taken to hospital on Thursday after pleading with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in person to help rescue her husband.

On Thursday evening, at a public event, Kumar said he was open to talks with the Naxals. But some reports suggest that before Yadav's death was announced, Bihar officials were in the midst of negotiations with the insurgents. The state police chief denied this.

‘By taking people hostage, I don't know what example the Naxals are trying to set,’ Kumar said. The centre has backed him, with the Home Ministry stating, ‘we are with the Bihar government. We fully support what they are doing.’

The Chief Minister's tightrope skills will be severely tested now. A few months earlier, he said, ‘Naxal elements are a part of our society even though they have been misled onto the path of violence.’