Top 5 Intelligence Agencies of
India
In this article article I will make
you know about the top 5 undercover Intelligence agencies who is working 24*7
to ensure full safety of our country here we are discussing about top 5 intelligence
agencies though India has 13 Intelligence agencies in its fold all of them have
their different missions and different way of work. Inside this article I will
try to elaborate RAW, IB, DIA, JCB, NTRO.
RAW – India’s world
renowned intelligence RAW is acting as a primary foreign intelligence agency of
India. RAW stands for Research & Analysis Wing formed in 21 September 1968.
Before RAW, IB ( Intelligence Bureau) was doing all external as well as
internal jobs but due to its gaps exposure in the war of 1962 and 1965 prime
minister Indira Gandhi decided to create RAW. RAW started its work with 250
employess and an annual budget of Rs 20 million ( US $311,968) but in few years
RAW established its huge network with thousands of employees and budget of
Rs300 millions ( US $4.7 million) RAW has hude burden of responsibilities because
the whole structure of security forces rely on them foe intel inputs but RAW
has its own objectives and every employee of the agency is motivated towards
its duty for the naton.
RAW has determined some
objectives which are the reflection of dedication and patriotism of the
agencies towards the nation :
- Monitoring the political, military,
economic and scientific developments in countries which have direct bearing on
India's national security and the formulation of its foreign policy.
-
Moulding international public opinion
with the help of the strong and vibrant Indian diaspora.
- Covert Operations to safe guard
India's National interes
-
Anti – Terror Operations and
neutralising terror elements posing a threat to India
·
IB - Shrouded in secrecy, the IB is
used to garner intelligence from within India and also execute
counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism tasks. The Bureau comprises
employees from law enforcement agencies, mostly from the Indian Police Service
(IPS) or the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) and the military. However, the
Director of Intelligence Bureau (DIB) has always been an IPS officer. In
addition to domestic intelligence responsibilities, the IB is particularly
tasked with intelligence collection in border areas, following the 1951
recommendations of the Himmatsinhji Committee (also known as the North and
North-East Border Committee), a task entrusted to the military intelligence
organisations prior to independence in 1947. All spheres of human activity
within India and in the neighborhood are allocated to the charter of duties of
the Intelligence Bureau. The IB was also tasked with other external
intelligence responsibilities as of 1951 until 1968, when the Research and
Analysis Wing was formed Understanding of the shadowy workings of the IB is
largely speculative. Many a times even their own family members are unaware of
their whereabouts. One known task of the IB is to clear licences to amateur
radio enthusiasts. The IB also passes on intelligence between other Indian
intelligence agencies and the police. The Bureau also grants the necessary
security clearances to Indian diplomats and judges before they take the oath.
On rare occasions, IB officers interact with the media during a crisis situation.
The IB is also rumoured to intercept and open around 6,000 letters daily. It
also has an email spying system similar to FBI's Carnivore system. The Bureau
is also authorised to conduct wiretapping without a warrant.
DIA - The Defence Intelligence Agency (D.I.A.) is an organisation
responsible for providing and coordinting intelligence for the Indian armed
forces. It was created in March 2002 and is administered within the Ministry of
Defence.
It is the nodal agency for all defence
related intelligence, thus distinguishing it from the R&AW. Much of the
agency's budget and operations are classified. DIA has control of Indian Army's
prized technical intelligence assets – the Directorate of Signals Intelligence
and the Defence Image Processing and Analysis Centre (DIPAC). While the Signals
Directorate is responsible for acquiring and decrypting enemy communications,
the DIPAC controls India's satellite-based image acquisition capabilities. The
DIA also controls the Defence Information Warfare Agency (DIWA) which handles
all elements of the information warfare repertoire, including psychological
operations, cyber-war, electronic intercepts and the monitoring of sound waves.
Its operations are highly classified and has several success to its credit
which will remain a secret.
Together with Research and Analysis Wing
(R&AW) & Intelligence Bureau (IB), DIA forms a part of India's nodal
intelligence setup.s
JCB - The Joint Cipher Bureau is an agency of the Indian armed forces
responsible for signals intelligence and cryptanalysis and coordinating similar
activities and operations of military intelligence agencies.
The Joint Cipher Bureau works closely
with the IB and R&AW. It is responsible for cryptanalysis and encryption of
sensitive data. The inter-services Joint Cipher Bureau has primary
responsibility for cryptology and SIGINT, providing coordination and direction
to the other military service organizations with similar mission. Most current
equipment providing tactical intelligence is of Russian origin, including
specialized direction finding and monitoring equipment.
The Joint Cipher Bureau is also
responsible for issues relating to public and private key management.
Cryptographic products are export-controlled licensed items, and licenses to
India are not generally available for products of key length of more than 56
bits. The domestic Indian computer industry primarily produces PCs, and
PC-compatible cryptographic products have been developed and are being used
commercially. More robust cryptologic systems are not commercially produced in
India, and progress in this field has been slow due to the general
unavailability of technology and know-how. Customised cryptographic products
have been designed and produced by organizations in the defence sector are engaged
in the implementation of cryptographic techniques, protocols and the products.
NTRO - The National Technical
Research Organization (NTRO), originally known as the National Technical
Facilities Organization (NTFO), is a highly specialized technical intelligence
gathering agency. While the agency does not affect the working of technical
wings of various intelligence agencies, including those of the Indian Armed
Forces it acts as a super-feeder agency for providing technical intelligence to
other agencies on internal and external security. The agency is under the
control of India's external intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing,
although it remains autonomous to some degree. The Group of Ministers (GOM)
headed by then Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani had recommended the
constitution of the NTFO as a state-of-the-art technical wing of intelligence
gathering. Due to security concerns, the recommendation along with such other
matters were not made public when the GOM report was published. The organization
does hi-tech surveillance jobs, including satellite monitoring, terrestrial
monitoring, internet monitoring, considered vital for the national security
apparatus. The NTRO would require over ₹700 crore (US$110 million) to
procure different hi-tech equipment from specialized agencies around the globe
to become fully functional. The officials have identified countries from where
such gadgets could be procured but refused to reveal them due to 'security and
other implications'. The Government had been working in this direction after
the Kargil war in 1999 when the Subrahmanyam committee report pointed out
weaknesses in intelligence gathering in the national security set up. Sources
said the road-map for constitution of the National Technical Facilities Organisation
was prepared by Dr A P J Abdul Kalam in October 2001 when he was the Principal
Scientific Adviser. It was subsequently mentioned in the Group of Ministers
report on internal security.
