Amit Shah calls for 10-year PRAHAAR strategy, automated counter-terror response at every level

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday called for institutionalising an automated counter-terrorism response mechanism at every level and developing a strong PRAHAAR framework for the next 10 years, stressing that security agencies must continuously analyse terror incidents and adapt their responses to emerging threats.

Inaugurating a conference on ‘PRAHAAR – CT Policy and Strategy’ in New Delhi, Shah said the principles of the national counter-terror framework must reach down to the police station level. He called for a proactive and results-oriented approach, along with greater coordination among agencies to prevent delays in responding to terrorism-related threats.

Ten-year roadmap

Shah said sustained efforts were needed to strengthen and improve PRAHAAR through continuous assessment of terrorist incidents. He sought the establishment of a strong mechanism capable of guiding India’s counter-terror response over the next decade.

The Home Minister stressed that the strategy should not remain confined to central agencies or senior levels of the security establishment. Its principles, he said, should be implemented down to the ‘thana’, or police station, level so that the country develops an integrated response structure across different layers of law enforcement.

Automated response mechanism

A key focus of Shah’s address was the use of technology to reduce delays in counter-terror operations. He advocated institutionalising an automated counter-terrorism response mechanism at every level of the PRAHAAR framework and called for stronger coordination among stakeholders.

Shah said the objective should be to ensure there is no delay in action and that different agencies work together effectively. The government has increasingly emphasised technology, intelligence sharing and coordinated responses among central and state agencies as part of its approach to internal security.

Seven pillars of PRAHAAR

The conference deliberated on the seven pillars underpinning PRAHAAR — Prevention, Response, Aggregating Internal Capacities, Human Rights, Attenuating Conditions for Terrorism, Aligning International Efforts, and Recovery and Resilience.

The framework follows what the government describes as a “whole-of-government” and “whole-of-society” approach. It seeks to combine prevention and rapid response with intelligence sharing, institutional coordination, international cooperation, counter-radicalisation measures, human rights and rule-of-law-based processes.

PRAHAAR was unveiled by the Ministry of Home Affairs on February 23 this year as India’s first comprehensive National Counter-Terrorism Policy and Strategy. The framework seeks to shift the emphasis from responding to terrorist incidents after they occur towards intelligence-led prevention and coordinated intervention.

Top security officials attend

The conference brought together senior officials from the Centre and states, including the Union Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, heads of Central Armed Police Forces and Central Police Organisations, Directors General of Police from 15 states and chiefs of Anti-Terrorism Squads from all states and Union Territories.

Other state police chiefs and senior officers joined the deliberations virtually. The participation of both central and state agencies reflected the government’s emphasis on building a common counter-terror architecture in which intelligence and operational responses can move quickly across jurisdictions.

Fugitives brought back

Shah also highlighted efforts to bring fugitives back to India, saying 288 fugitive criminals had been returned from 36 countries between 2019 and 2026. He called on state police forces to establish dedicated teams to work with central agencies on extradition cases.

The Home Minister also launched an Extradition Portal aimed at improving coordination and accelerating efforts to bring fugitives back to the country. The portal is intended to provide agencies with a more structured mechanism for handling extradition-related processes.

Action against terror networks

Shah cited coordinated action against the Shahzad Bhatti network as an example of inter-agency cooperation. According to the government, more than 40 modules linked to the network and allegedly involved in cross-border smuggling of weapons, explosives and narcotics had been dismantled.

The government said more than 100 FIRs had been registered and around 350 people arrested across 15 states in operations connected with the network. Shah used the figures to underline his argument for greater intelligence sharing and coordination among agencies as the PRAHAAR framework is implemented nationwide.