With Narendra Modi set to take charge next week, the Home Ministry has accorded top priority to the return of Kashmiri Pundits to the Valley and measures to check the influx of illegal immigration from Bangladesh in its report to Cabinet Secretariat. The report, which is to be submitted before the next Government, also suggested a series of mechanisms to improve Centre-State relations.
The UPA Government’s controversial NCTC to handle terrorism has, obviously, been left out of the report. The setting up of NCTC, the brainchild of P Chidambaram, was vehemently opposed by Modi in several Chief Ministers’ conferences. Return of Kashmiri Pandits to the Valley and zero tolerance towards Bangladeshi immigrants are two key areas of focus for BJP.
It is against this backdrop that the Home Ministry has put together its plan for rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pundits, many of whom are still living in camps in Jammu, and how they are to be provided with security once they return to the Valley.The report notes that infiltration from Bangladesh has come down to a great extent but not stopped totally as fencing along the 4,096 km-long Indo-Bangla border is yet to be completed due to various factors, including existence of riverine areas.
The Home Ministry has stressed on frequent interactions between the leaders of the Central and State Governments to improve relations as cooperation among them is necessary for the implementation of the Union government’s development and security agenda.The ministry has suggested that the Inter-State and Zonal Councils should be reactivated with active participation of Chief Ministers and central leaders.
Tackling of home-grown terror outfits like Indian Mujahideen, the Maoist issue, security of women, revamping of Intelligence agencies and reform of the criminal justice system are few of the other issues which have been highlighted by Home Ministry in its report submitted to Cabinet Secretary Ajit Seth.
The ministry emphasised on the need to expedite reforms of police forces and strengthen paramilitary forces from “teeth to tail”. The report concentrates on four critical areas — ‘achievements’, ‘gaps’, ‘vision’ and ‘low-hanging fruits’.The ‘achievements’ note the successes of the ministry, including the arrest of many terrorists in the recent past, reduction of terror incidents in the hinterland and enactment of the tough anti-rape law.
The ‘gaps’ highlight the areas in which the government has to give priority, like intelligence gathering, coordination among States and the Centre in tackling Maoists and the things which could have been done differently.‘Vision’ mentions the long-term goals and plans which can be implemented in a phased manner along with steps which can be taken to strengthen the country’s internal security apparatus.
‘low hanging fruits’ lists out short-term action plans which can be implemented for immediate results on a priority basis, like reduction of casualties among security forces engaged in tackling Maoist ultras.