FICCI security report: Old wine in new bottle

Much of the recommendations, for instance, on how to tackle the Naxal challenge is a repetition of what have been said a zillion times by various committees and experts
Rakhi Chakrabarty Delhi Hardnews

At a time when the country is grappling with security concerns, both internally and externally, it could have done with some out-of-the-box thinking or innovative solutions for the myriad problems. But, this was just another report presented by the FICCI task force on national security and terrorism.

It's a high-profile task force comprising the likes of AK Doval, former IB chief, B Raman, former additional secretary, cabinet secretariat, Lt gen (retd) Satish Nambiar, Air Chief Marshal (retd) S Krishnaswamy, Ved Marwah, former NSG chief, Amit Mitra, secretary-general, FICCI, and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Rajya Sabha MP and former FICCI president as the chairman. The report was presented to Home Minister P Chidambaram on Monday.

Air Chief Marshal (retd) S Krishnaswamy admitted that there is nothing unique in the report. Let's look at a couple of examples. Much of the recommendations, for instance, on how to tackle the Naxal challenge is a repetition of what have been said a zillion times by various committees and experts.

But, it is silent on how to address the specific concerns that stokes the Red terror and makes it difficult to tackle. For instance, the task force could have recommended a mining policy for the country. After all, a large swathe of the land which is part of the Red corridor is rich in mineral resources. Decades of exploitation by the mining industry has left the people inhabiting the region aggrieved. The Maoists have fed off on these grievances of the people to expand their spheres of influence.

When asked, Chandrasekhar, however, told Hardnews that it would be dealt with in the second volume of the report.

In the task of combating the Maoists, one of the hurdles faced by the State is on the psychological warfare front. The Maoists, however, have scored with their agit-prop. While the Maoists have succeeded in spinning an aura of invincibility around them, inspiring fear in the minds of even the police and paramilitary personnel, they also have managed to get legitimacy for their brutality by cloaking it in ideology and highlighting the poor governance and corruption of the government. The civil society has a quiet acquiescence for the Maoist ideology and deep suspicion, even opposition, to the State's action against the Left ultras.

How can the government, both at the Centre and in the states, get the civil society on its side in its efforts to combat the Maoists? Till date, thinking on this score is nebulous and peripheral to policy making on tackling Maoists. Naturally, it would have been of great use if the FICCI task force comprising members with long experience in the security arena could have highlighted this aspect and offered a plan of action.

Finally, why have another report which is largely an echo of so many in the past? Is it an attempt by a section of the industry and corporate sector to push the interests of arms dealers and suppliers. After all, it is well known that India is fast emerging as a key market for homeland security equipment. At the Indesec Expo 2009, an exhibition dedicated to homeland security supported by the Union home ministry, as many as 130 companies participated compared to only 30 last year.