Inter-agency turf battles cripple India's war on terror

NEW DELHI: The glaring lack of intelligence on the 13/7 attack underlines how inter-agency turf wars, political fault lines in the government, and privacy issues are enmeshing India’s war on terrorism in a web of competing interests.

Despite the shock of the 26/11 carnage providing fresh salience to security policy, the much-discussed National Counter-Terrorism Centre ( NCTC) is yet to come into being. Its crucial adjunct, the National Intelligence Grid (Natgrid), has been set up, but its data collating functions are being blocked by differences at the top and privacy campaigners.

The National Technical Research Organization (NTRO), whose functions include telephone surveillance, is yet to be notified as a “monitoring” agency despite clearance from the cabinet committee on security. Formed in 2004 as part of post-Kargil security reforms, the Union home ministry has still not been able to activate it due to stiff opposition from the Intelligence Bureau. Notification is needed to empower the agency to intercept internet and other electronic communication, a task it now carries out by seeking specific case-by-case permissions.

The NCTC and Natgrid proposals have been pushed strongly by Union home minister P Chidambaram, but he has found the going far from easy. The sharing of databases involving banking, air travel and police organizations has been opposed by privacy actvists who are said to have found an ally in the Union finance ministry.

The US set up the NCTC within three years of the 2001 attacks. But India’s NCTC proposal is still to be tabled for approval of the CCS.

Natgrid, which is to bring 21 databases into a seamless network for intelligence and investigation agencies, received approval for its first phase only a few weeks ago.