Recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah indicated that the National Intelligence Grid or NATGRID may finally be launched. He mentioned that if COVID-19 had not been there, NATGRID would have already been launched. It has been conceptualised as a seamless and secure database for information on terrorists, economic crimes and similar incidents.
Here’s all you need to know about the integrated counter-terrorism platform NATGRID
What is NATGRID?
- The NATGRID has been envisaged as a robust mechanism to track suspects and prevent terrorist attacks with real-time data and access to classified information like immigration, banking, individual taxpayers, air and train travels.
- The goal of NATGRID is to provide cutting-edge technology to improve India’s counter-terror capabilities.
- NATGRID is an information sharing network that collects data from the separate databases of the various agencies and ministries of the Indian government. It would also have access to the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems, a database that connects crime data from 14,000 police stations across India, including First Information Reports..
- It is headed by an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Ashish Gupta.
Necessity behind the launch of NATGRID
The necessity for the NATGRID came after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks exposed the deficiency that security agencies had no mechanism to look for vital information on a real-time basis.
One of the greatest obstacles in discovering US terror suspect David Headley’s transit around the country during his several visits between 2006 and 2009 was a lack of quick information to intelligence and enforcement agencies.
Headley had given crucial information and videos of terror targets to the Pakistani terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba, that was responsible for the Mumbai attacks, in which166 people, including foreigners were killed.
On April 8, 2010, the Cabinet Committee on Security approved the Rs 3,400-crore NATGRID project, however construction slowed after 2012. Modi, who first came to power in 2014, issued instructions for its restoration later.
How will NATGRID work?
- According to a PTI article, the NATGRID will be connected to 10 user agencies and 21 service providers in the initial phase, with roughly 950 additional organisations joining in later phases.
- Over 1,000 organisations will be progressively integrated into the NATGRID in the next few years. These data sources include records related to immigration entry and exit, banking and financial transactions and telecommunications.
- As per a recent order, the Income Tax Department would exchange PAN and bank account details of any organisation with ten investigative and intelligence agencies under NATGRID.
- In a July 21 order, the Central Board of Direct Taxes, which sets policy for the IT Department, stated that information such as permanent account numbers (PANs), Tax Deduction and Collection Account Numbers (TANs), bank account information, a summary of IT Returns and tax deducted at source (TDS), and “any other information as mutually agreed” will be shared with the ten agencies.
- The National Intelligence Grid will be used to “provide and receive information to and from” these core institutions.
- The CBDT and the NATGRID will sign a Memorandum of Understanding to finalise the latest information-sharing mechanism.
Access to NATGRID
Prominent federal agencies of the country have been authorized to access the NATGRID database. They are the:
- Central Bureau of Investigation
- Directorate of Revenue Intelligence,
- Enforcement Directorate
- Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
- Central Board of Direct Taxes (for the Income Tax Department)
- Cabinet Secretariat
- Intelligence Bureau
- Directorate General of GST Intelligence
- Narcotics Control Bureau
- Financial Intelligence Unit, and
- National Investigation Agency
The final “synchronisation and testing” of the ambitious electronic database, which was mooted after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in 2008, is being carried out so that it can go live.
With this we come to the end of this blog. We covered all the relevant information about NATGRID.
Stay tuned for more updates.
