By Our Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Government is committed that terrorism, left-wing extremism and insurgency in the North East is completely wiped out in the next five years, said Union Minister for Home Affairs, Amit Shah, while delivering the 32nd Intelligence Bureau (IB) Centenary Endowment Lecture, in New Delhi on Monday.
Lauding the IB for ably tackling the challenges of national security, the Home Minister made special note of the work done by IB in busting terror modules in the last five years and appreciated IB for having tackled North East insurgency very effectively over the years.
Listing out national security challenges in the coming years, especially against the backdrop of the Nation’s aim of becoming a $5 trillion economy, Shah accorded special focus on securing our land and maritime borders. Encouraging the personnel to identify solutions to these challenges and look for new ways to counter them, he asked them to change their approach to be more effective. He also saluted IB personnel who work tirelessly and anonymously for National Security and underscored their contribution in helping the country emerge stronger.
Calling IB as the ‘brain’ of the national security apparatus, the Home Minister said that they have always helped to ensure Zero Tolerance to Terrorism and Naxalism. In this context, he pointed to the interlinked challenges of human and weapons trafficking, cross-border infiltration, fake Indian currency notes (FICN), hawala transactions, drug trafficking as well as Cyber threats. Emphasising on the need for a special initiative to tackle these challenges, he stressed on the need to co-opt professional experts in specific fields, like Cyber Security.
Underscoring the importance of coordination between different security and intelligence agencies, Shah exhorted the personnel for sharper intelligence analysis, along with a prompt phase-wise and time-bound strategy to address national security challenges. Concluding his speech, the Home Minister appreciated and acknowledged the hard work and expertise of IB personnel and emphasised that their work would be etched in golden letters in the annals of history.
