Big brother has come to India, as if the Unique Identification Number project wasn't enough, the government wants to network 21 available databases across government and private agencies to 'flag potential terrorist threats.' The government believes that UID project may not be enough to eliminate the risks of terror on the domestic front.
In less than two years, these databases will be linked to enable security and intelligence agencies get any information at the press of a button under the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID), a brainchild of Home Minister P Chidambaram. NATGRID is currently awaiting the approval of the Cabinet Committee on Security.
A Home Ministry document acknowledges sensitivity and secrecy of the data available on the grid by stressing that only 11 selected government agencies will be able to access the grid and a special mechanism will prevent any leakage of data. As such, the raw data will reside with the provider agencies and will be readily available to NATGRID, as it will only take abstracted and approved subsets of information from the original databases.
The new system is being designed to help the government agencies combat terror and threats to internal security by generating "actionable" intelligence through search and retrieval from the networked databases. The grid will have a command centre that will double up as an anti-terror hotline and will have an international connect to network with data available in other countries that is useful to keep a tab on suspects.
This project is being headed by 43-year old Captain Raghu Raman who has been hired on a 18 month contract and enjoys the perks of a joint secretary.. Raman, an former soldier previously headed Mahindra's Special Services Group that provided corporate risk mitigation services
The Home Ministry's proposal before CCS for administrative and financial sanction envisages a total workforce of 290, including 98 'outside consultants,' who have all been identified by the CEO. The unit is ready to get cracking with the mission of linking various databases in four phases.
The eleven agencies who will have access to the database include the Intelligence Bureau, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), Military Intelligence, Revenue Intelligence, National Intelligence Agency and National Security Council. Personnel from these agencies will be work with NATGRID to liaison with their parent organisations and guide them in usage of the data generated.
The first phase is limited to linking up only the databases that are available with the Centre, besides those of one or two state entities as a concurrent pilot project. The first phase is limited to the data already accessible through the current procedures.
All the authorised agencies will be linked up among themselves as also with government agencies like Railways, Air India, Income Tax department and state police and the private agencies like banks, insurance companies, telecom service providers and the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
Sources say a limited analytical capability will begin as the networking begins in the first phase, though the operationalisation of the intelligence produced will remain the responsibility of the operating units like the