New Delhi: NSA Conference Sets Ambitious Security Agenda

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the inaugural day of the two-day National Security Strategies Conference in New Delhi emphasized enhanced training for implementing the country's counter-terrorism and counter-radicalisation doctrine, Prahaar, and called for expediting trials in cases with cross-border linkages. Shah also advocated the use of trial in absentia to bring foreign-based masterminds to justice, as reported by The Times of India.

The conference, organized by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and attended by over 850 officials from security forces, agencies, and police forces, focused on a broad range of national security challenges. The first day's deliberations included counter-terrorism response, fusion and operationalisation of intelligence through multi-agency centres (MAC), a vision document on narcotics control, detection and deportation of illegal migrants, a policy framework to combat cyber-crime, and proxy warfare by Pakistan. Shah reportedly directed that artificial intelligence-based analysis of information on MAC platforms be used to create standard operating procedures for various security challenges, and instructed strict measures against infiltration while asking police forces to adopt a comprehensive approach in Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act cases.

'Not a Dharamshala': Border Security and Illegal Immigration

On the second and concluding day, Shah addressed the valedictory session, reiterating that "this country is not a Dharamshala and only the citizens have the right to live here," according to both The Times of India and The Tribune. He said the Narendra Modi government has set a goal to make the country illegal immigration-free in a "very short period of time" and, to that end, has shared with land-border states a document outlining a quadrangular approach to border security, as The Times of India reported. The policy enlists border guarding forces, state/district administration, government bodies, and local citizens as key stakeholders.

Shah stated that infiltrators threaten the country's security, economy, and trigger "unnatural demographic shifts," as The Times of India reported. The Tribune similarly highlighted that infiltrators pose a threat to security, economy, and demographic balance. The deliberations at the conference emphasised that the twin challenges of infiltration and narcotics smuggling must be tackled through a robust ecosystem.

Narcotics Control and Centre-State Coordination

Shah said India could win the fight against narcotics only through coordinated efforts of the central and state governments, as The Tribune reported. He asked police forces across all states to implement the Narcotics Control Vision Document 2026-2029, and called for stricter action against narcotics smuggling. The action against the Popular Front of India (PFI), which was banned and whose network was dismantled overnight, was cited as an example of successful Centre-State coordination.

PM's Vision and Future Challenges

Shah underlined that the conference focused on anticipating security trends for the next 15-20 years, as reported by The Times of India. He said challenges should be identified and destroyed before they escalate, and commended state police and central agencies for eliminating "hotspots" in Jammu & Kashmir, Left-wing extremism-hit areas, and the north-east. He also noted that past governments' failure to visualise problems led to decades of burden.

The home minister said PM Modi had set the target of making India a developed nation by 2047, and the first condition for that is strengthening internal security. He mentioned that the government had deported 274 fugitives from different countries between 2019 and 2026, and asked officials to use integrated data banks such as CCTNS, ICJS, Natgrid, and NAFIS with AI to generate actionable intelligence.

The conference agenda for the second day included discussions on threats from sub-aerial systems, blue economy security, information warfare, and bio-security framework, as reported by The Times of India.

Perspectives

  • Government's view (Union Home Minister Shah): The strategy calls for decisive action against infiltration, narcotics, and cross-border terrorism, with emphasis on Centre-state coordination and use of technology for intelligence gathering. This position is evidenced by his remarks about the 'dharamshala' comment, and the quadrangular approach, and the PFI as a positive example.
  • Official conference consensus: The deliberations highlighted global instability, energy insecurity, supply chain disruptions, radicalisation, and cyber misinformation as key challenge areas that must be reflected in national security policy. Both reports from The Times of India and The Tribune attribute these concerns to the conference itself.