CAMPAIGNERS fighting on behalf of hostage Paul Wells are calling on the Indian Government to mount a 1,000-man search of possible burial sites.

Julie Mangan, wife of Blackburn student Paul's fellow captive Keith Mangan, will also insist on speaking to a jailed militant who claimed he could pinpoint the men's graves when she travels to the Indian sub-continent today.

Julie is planning to meet the wife of American hostage Donald Hutchings and the sister of German captive Dirk Hasert during her visit.

She will spend five days in New Delhi before travelling to the troubled Indian province of Jammu Kashmir, where the Westerners were captured by militants in July 1995.

James Bowman, director of the Hostages In Kashmir Campaign, said: "Julie wants an intense search to end all of this speculation and rumour once and for all. She wants it to be a thorough search so that she can be sure."

Several militants are said to have given Indian authorities the same story about the death of the four Westerners.

Each claimed the men were killed in December 1995 and buried at several possible locations. including Megam, the Kokanag forest and Anatnag. All have been searched to no avail.

But Mr Bowman added: "They have used perhaps only a handful of men in these searches and we are talking about an area of hundreds of miles."

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