BHUBANESHWAR: Two Russians were handed over to the police by people at Niali in Cuttack after they were found travelling in an open truck and Puri police today began their verification.
The duo, identified as Vasil Lu Fair and Maratha Galimur, had been handed over to the police yesterday, a day after an Intelligence Bureau alert had been sounded across the state warning against a possible terrorist strike by Pak-based groups, Puri superintendent of police Asish Kumar Singh said.
"We have been verifying the credentials of the two foreigners and examined their passport and visa validity," he said adding the two Russian youths were qualified civil engineers and had come to India on tourist visa. They had come to the country from Iran and had reached Puri on January 19 via Mumbai.
They were caught by the local people while they were returning from Konark in a truck yesterday and were handed over to the police, he said.
Stating that there was no objectionable evidence against them so far, the SP said the police had been no information about the hotel and lodgings where they stayed.
They were staying in a tent along the seashore in Puri. Tickets to Bangkok from Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata for January 26 were found on them, he added.