Terrorism has finally struck at the soul of our country. Middle-class India is now wary of frequenting crowded marketplaces, evening-show movies and the like. The comparison most of us make is with the absence of terror-strikes in post-9/11 U.S. and our shameful track-record on the subject. A cursory look at the machinery that is responsible for our internal security will reveal why it should surprise none.
- The country's internal security is largely in the hands of a "coveted" cadre of cops drawn in from the Indian Police Services (IPS). Most of them opt for this service after having failed to make it to more lucrative/prestigious forms of civil services and many spend the first 2 years of their career re-appearing for the same exam in the hope of escaping from the torturuous rigmarole of chasing criminals in the middle of the night or queling rioteers. Given the nature of the civil services entrance process, they typically tend to have a pronounced academic bent and most of them are far more comfortable with Leo Tolstoy's "War & Peace" as opposed to Kalashnikovs (a lot of them turn to literary pursuits post retirement!). To expect folks of this genre to either develop an overnight sense of comfort with armed combat or a deep sense of commitment to the nation's battle against terrorism (when they normally harbour overt frustration at not having made it to civil administration) is a little far-fetched.
- Battling terrorism succesfully is dependent heavily on intelligence gathering. The country's intelligence network largely rests on 2 agencies- RAW and IB. I recently read a shoddily written but factually revealing book on RAW by an ex-serviceman. What is abundantly clear is that the 2 organisations revel in working at cross-purposes and focus singularly on one-upmanship with the political dispensation. Further, postings in these organisations often tend to be driven by a personal need to stay in Delhi as opposed to either commitment to internal security or domain expertise at intelligence. These internal conflicts are legion even within the CIA & FBI but 9/11 forced them to close ranks. Alas, a string of terror strikes seem to have contributed to nothing similar in our country. Intelligence gathering is dependent on trust and relationship developed with "sources" over several years and the deputation-driven musical chairs arrangement does not facilitate this.
I believe its not too late to invest in a system that should correct this in the long-term:
1. The IPS should be de-linked from the traditional civil services route. We should have a Police Academy on the lines of the National Defence Academy which should draw upon committed youngsters, preferably at under-graduate level and provide them with specialised training for 3-4 years. Like with the NDA, various streams of specialisation can be evolved- crime, intelligence, district administration and the like.
2. In the short-term, the Police Services should import specialists from the army in select crack outfits for combat and intelligence. There are several talented defence personnel who may not be able to climb the ladder within defence ranks given exalted medical requirements. However, they are certain to add a lot more value to the civilian security establishment than the current system permits. Believe it or not, RAW has folks from the Forest and Income Tax services deputed for external intelligence but defence personnel (when deputed) get relegated to telecommuncations and the like!
3 days ago, I expressed my admiration for the MOSSAD to a former CBI-chief I bumped into at at a bar. He reciprocated it and went on to mention how he was surprised when the MOSSAD chief called him to dinner when he was on an "undercover" trip to Israel. I thought it was a telling reflection on the state of affairs in our country.
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3 comments:
hi mahesh, i appreciate your views and i fully respect your outburst as every indian feels the same way as you do on date.
as mentioned on the lighter side that indian police is better that any other police as they know of the crime even before it is committed. but one needs to go deeper into this. i have experienced this personelly when in J&K that the indian police has good intelligence but are so shamelessly corrupt that they make money for that as well. to cut it short, the police network in its present form is OK but is INEFFECTIVE. the question now is what is that which can get this white elephant to perform. the IPS cadre are anyway not part of the police at the grassroot level. they have become a sort of white collared CEO attending and inaugurating functions and seminars.
as far as RAW and IB are concerned, i have interacted with them from close quaters and found them utterly ineffective in J&K. their intelligence is very generic. to quote one such intelligence report - "terrorist planning to strike on independence day functions" all of us know about it. this is information not intelligence. now its virtually inpossible for the security forces to be present everywhere. the moment there is a strike in some corner,it incidently falls under their universal intelligence umbrella and they blame the security forces for failing to avoid the incident.
thereafter it is the politician who gain mileage from all this (some of which is created and funded by them as well). And last but not the least the media who sum it up by appreciating the spirit of the people who have risen from the shock in less than 24 hrs and normal life has resumed - do they have an option?
so finally it boils down to two things - firstly, responsibility and accountibility and secondly immediate followup action. it takes us few years (till a hijack)from the time a militant caught and proved to the time that he is finally punished. bombay blast trial has become a international joke.
a geographically small country like israel with population not more than a mojar political rally in india has lessons to teach us on national pride and how a notion should react against its enemies (both within and external.
hence to sum it up it is we the people who are responsible for this disaster. we elect misery to the parliament and they act the way they should. so why blame them. I strongly feel all the required system in certainly in place but in in hands of corrupt elected representative of the people who are supposed to take policy decision. so the rang de basanti method may not be too correct;(though not ruled out) but educated young people need to join politics and enter the pareliament to make the system work for the country and not their way. till such time this does not happen many such blogs will be written, appreciated and forgotten.
I could not agree more on the need to have a more effective policing with its nucleus drawn from a national police academy or an institution of similar nature. An institution that instills pride professionalism in the police forces instead of price!
However there are deeper malaises in police forces. The fact remains that ordinary policeman - not IPS - but the men who are at the frontline are shabbily treated. They are poorly paid, ill equipped and treated like servants by their officers. How many of us have seen in numerous Hindi movie(s), an inspector ordering his constable to fetch tea. They are poorly paid with bad housing provided thru “Police Housing Corporations” which are run by shunted out IPS officers, looking for every opportunity to cop out (pun intended!).
In the Army the Jawan and his needs come first, in the police they come last. No wonder there is a complete lack of espirit d'corps. While we must get the top brass cleaned up the more urgent need is to get the quality of the policemen going. Treat them well. Educate them well. We will see a big change in the nature of the police force, and more importantly society will accord them respect. When society accords them respect quality of intelligence and pro activeness will change. Only then can the ordinary policeman fight terrorism effectively!
A constable is after all an “officer” of the law. The IPS must treat the ordinary policeman that way before the general public will.
On a lighter note I am stupefied that the CBI chief was on an "undercover trip" to Israel. Even more amazed that he did not expect the MOSSAD to know! I am flabbergasted that he was surprised! Phew! I am glad that he is a “ex” CBI chief!
Well written piece and good recommendations too, for reforming the Intelligence & Police set–up.
While the MOSSAD is probably the most admired intelligence agency in the world, the Indian environment is way more complex (not to forget, the motivation for MOSSAD is the very survival of the Jewish state).
To start with, as per our Constitution, Law & order is a State subject http://india.gov.in/citizen/police.php. The Central Govt’s powers are limited.
There are myriad Law & Order challenges in different parts of the country. Terrorists & separatists in J&K, ULFA in Assam, Naga separatists in Nagaland & Mizoram, Naxalities across eastern & central India, LTTE supporters in the south, etc. I am not sure if all of these can be viewed purely as Law & Order issues. Then there are communal clashes, Bangladesh refugee issues, election related violence and so on, apart from regular Law & Order issues like bribery, theft, rape, etc.
Then there is the Judicial angle. Is it able to deliver justice to terrorists & criminals caught by the Police? I am not even venturing to talk about the role of politics in all this.
To be fair, some of the states have done a good job of tackling Law & Order issues. The Greyhounds of Andhra Pradesh (AP) are one such example. Apart from that one major debacle in Balimela Dam, Orissa, they have been largely successful in containing Naxal violence in AP.
Contrast that with the situation in Orissa where the Police force is understaffed, undertrained & underpaid. You may wish to read this well written article http://www.hindu.com/2008/08/07/stories/2008080754761000.htm
Terrorism is evolving and, attacking soft targets is the latest front. Chennai has been spared so far, but as I keep telling myself – the Chennai Police & Intelligence Agencies can succeed 99 times but me & my family might be the victims of the one time they fail. You are right, there is a lingering element of fear when one visits crowded places with the family.
Was it L.K.Advani who suggested the need for setting–up a Federal Agency? Your suggestion might be the way out.
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