GUWAHATI, Nov 29 � Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today asserted that India was capable of meeting the challenges posed by growing global terror networks and that no terrorist organisation would be allowed to gain a foothold in the country.
Singh was addressing the inaugural session of the two-day 49th Annual Conference of Directors General of Police/Inspectors General of Police in the city. It is for the first time that the North-east is hosting the event.
Referring to the radical ISIS which was recruiting youths from as many as 80 countries, Singh said that even though a few misguided youths from India were found to have approached it, such fundamental ideology had few takers in India � something that would ensure the defeat of such evil forces.
�Indian Muslims are committed to their motherland, and this has been testified to by their acts of selflessness, valour and sacrifice since India�s freedom struggle. A united India can resist successfully the worst of terror outfits,� he said.
Singh also said that the Qaidatul-Jihad had an agenda of forming an Islamic subcontinent in India comprising the territories of Assam, together with West Bengal, Bihar, Jammu & Kashmir and Gujarat besides Bangladesh. �But such game-plans would never fructify as we are committed to protecting our nation�s integrity,� he added.
Voicing concern over the increasing use of cyber space by terror outfits to lure the youth to their radical agenda, Singh said that an effective strategy to counter the disturbing phenomenon was an urgent need.
�Radical elements are increasingly using the Internet to bring youths to their fold. This is extremely disquieting. I hope today�s DGPs� conference will deliberate on this also and devise a strategy to counter it,� he said.
Making a strong pitch for modernisation of police and augmentation of intelligence gathering in view of the growing terror threat perceptions, Singh said that various terror outfits such as Al Qaeda and the Bangladesh-based JMB were trying to foment trouble in India.
�Pakistan�s role in abetting terror acts in Jammu and Kashmir is well known but now things are getting complicated with the involvement of Al Qaeda, JMB, etc. But we are confident of tackling the emerging challenges,� he said, adding that India�s coastal security network also warranted a revamp.
Lauding the role played by police forces and intelligence agencies in ensuring security to the people, Singh said that the very presence of the men in uniform ought to instill in the common man a sense of assurance and responsibility.
On the internal security threats faced by the country in the form of the armed Maoist and secessionist movements, the Home Minister said that there was room for settling grievances through negotiation, but that violence would not be tolerated.
Singh said that militancy in Jammu and Kashmir was on the wane, and the just-concluded elections there gave a thumbs-up to democracy.
On militancy and ethnic conflicts in the North-east, Singh said that the region needed a big dose of development and that the BJP-led NDA Government was committed to putting the region in the fast-track growth path.
Earlier, Intelligence Bureau chief�SA Ibrahim, in his welcome address, referred to the country�s complex security challenges characterized by left-wing extremism, secessionism, and radicalization, and the need to put in place a matching response mechanism.�
Union Minister of State for Home, Kiren Rijiju was also present on the occasion.
Later, Singh laid foundation stone of the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) complex at Urput village near Palasbari on the city outskirts in the presence of Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and Union Minister of State for Home, Kiren Rijiju.
The complex which will be the first-of-its-kind in the North-east will be among the country�s best with equipment and infrastructure facilities in the disciplines of Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Explosives, Toxicology, Documents, Ballistics, Forensic Intelligence, Forensic Engineering, DNA, Computer Forensics, Psychology and Narcotic Drugs.
