NEW DELHI, Dec 26: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday announced plans to launch a “360-degree assault on organised crime” in the coming days while inaugurating two national databases aimed at strengthening India’s counter-terrorism framework.
Shah launched the Organised Crime Network Database and the Weapons Database for lost, looted and recovered arms, both hosted by the National Investigation Agency for use by law enforcement agencies across the country. He said these databases would form “a core asset of the zero-terror policy.”
The minister made these remarks while inaugurating the Anti-Terrorism Conference-2025, organized by the NIA on Friday, where he also unveiled the agency’s updated crime manual. The two-day conference was attended by top police and central agency officers from across the country.
Shah highlighted the dangerous links between organized criminals and terrorists. “Organised crime networks initially operate for the purpose of ransom and extortion, but when their leaders flee abroad and settle there, they automatically come into contact with terrorist organisations and then use the proceeds from ransom and extortion to spread terrorism within the country,” he said, according to a statement.
Every state must, under the guidance of the NIA and CBI, with the cooperation of the Intelligence Bureau, and by utilizing this database, eliminate organized crime within their jurisdiction, Shah said.
He urged agencies to move forward with the principle of ‘Duty to Share’ instead of ‘Need to Know.’ Central agencies and state police have made good use of technology at their level, but technology developed in silos and data collected in silos are like a gun without bullets, the statement quoted him as saying.
Shah emphasized that it is better if all data can communicate with each other and are created using the same technology. “For this purpose, the Ministry of Home Affairs, NIA, and IB should hold discussions to develop a seamless national-level framework for technology and data, and should support the states in strengthening it,” he said.
The minister said he expects the directors general of police to implement the database framework in letter and spirit. Shah noted that a new standard of coordination, cooperation and communication has been developed among the DGP Conference, Security Strategy Conference, N-CORD meetings and the Anti-Terror Conference.
“We cannot view these four pillars in isolation; running through them as a common thread is the Anti-Terrorism Conference,” Shah said.
