GUWAHATI, June 8 - Conceived and conceptualized in the line of the National Bomb Data Centre (NBDC), Assam Police�s initiative to set up an exclusive unit to evaluate and analyze bombing activities by militant groups, continues to remain in the cold storage even after more than a decade has elapsed.
This, at a time when security agencies across the globe are giving topmost priority to keep themselves abreast with the changing dynamics of terrorist bombing activities, and assessing the trends, as part of their counter-insurgency module.
�Although the State Bomb Centre is there on paper, it has not been entrusted with any mandate to work to date. We do not know if it would see the light of the day,� sources at the Assam Police headquarters here told The Assam Tribune.
�The State Bomb Centre was created as part of the Special Task Force (STF) in the aftermath of 26/11 Mumbai blasts. The basic idea was to create a database of IED-related bombings and analyze the nature of explosive used by militants. Unfortunately, despite appointments made, the centre never became operational. It is now virtually turning into a forgotten chapter,� sources said, adding, �Collecting, collating and analyzing of bombing activities proves handy in averting many attacks in the future.�
Records say that the sanctioned strength of the bomb centre has been put at 40-odd personnel and the actual strength as on date is 32. However, most of the appointees have been attached with different branches of Assam Police, while nine are currently on deputation with the Guwahati Police Commissionerate.
A senior Assam Police official, requesting anonymity, told this newspaper that in a state like Assam or for that matter the Northeast, set-ups like the State Bomb Centre could change the dynamics of investigation, especially in the context of preventive policing.
�At the moment, the Special Branch of the Assam Police is the one responsible for collecting and compiling the insurgency-related activities. But a set-up like the Bomb Centre where a dedicated team of experts will act in tandem, can fetch unbelievable results,� he opined.
