How did Modi govt handle internal security in two years- Part 2

New Delhi, May 24: There have been several hits where the handling of Internal Security by the two year old Narendra Modi government is concerned. In the first part we dealt with the hits or achievements on this front.

In this second part, we take a look at where the government has failed on the internal security front.

The two glaring misses of the government on this front would be the Pathankot attack and the terrorism problem in Kashmir. The Pathankot attack was a result of some lapses. However the bigger challenge for the Modi government is Kashmir and the rapid rise in militancy.

The Pathankot attack:
Before commenting on this attack, one should bear in mind that a terrorist needs to be lucky once, but the security agency needs to be lucky all the time. In the Pathankot attack, what one must need to look at is the advance intelligence that India had. An attack despite pretty concrete intelligence in advance.

It all begins with the border problem. The drug mafia operates freely along the Indo-Pak border at Punjab. It is these drug smugglers who sneak in the terrorists too. There was a complete lapse at the border and the security was caught napping.

The government was aware that this is a dangerous border and could have worked on securing it since day one.

The complaint by the Punjab SP about being abducted by the terrorists should have been treated more seriously. The problem was that at first many doubted the SP and due to this crucial time was lost.

The other decision was to send in the NSG ahead of the Special Forces is also a very debatable decision considering that the former specialises in situations where there is a hostage crisis.

The Kashmir issue:

Kashmir is on the boil and there have been a spate of incidents. Take for instance the Udhampur attack on the BSF personnel. Yesterday twin strikes in Srinagar was also a major wake up call. Many would argue that the reaction was slow when it came to the problem of terrorism in Kashmir.

Not every one in a terrorist organisation is an ideologically driven person. There are many in Kashmir who have complained that slow reforms in providing employment is one of the reasons why many youth have become gullible.

It is probably for the first time that we are witnessing the advent of the social media where terrorism in Kashmir is concerned.

When the young Burhan Wani an educated youth joined the Hizbul Mujahideen and posted pictures of himself on the social media, it should have been dealt with immediately. Instead it took nearly one year to wake up to the situation and in the meantime several youth had already joined.

The other issue is with regard to the alliance in Kashmir. Keeping Kashmir under Governor's rule for too long is a blunder.

The state needs a local government so that the local issues are addressed. In the absence of a government for over three months, the state was under the control of the governor and during this period some elements had spun out of control.

Points of infiltration:
Identifying the infiltration points should have been the first priority. Terror from Pakistan is India's biggest concern and to resolve this the border needs to be secure. The infiltrations started to increase in the year 2013 and went on for a long time.

The security agencies and also the intelligence bureau were not able to immediately identify the infiltration points. The BSF complained that due to the lack of radars they are unable to man such a huge border. The decision to mend the borders in Punjab came only after the Pathankot attack.

OneIndia News