New Delhi:

Even as search operations continue in the Jammu region where security forces are trying to flush out terrorists, back in Delhi Union Home Minister Amit Shah reviewed the new deployment strategy being enforced in Jammu and Kashmir.

“The Home Minister held discussions over assessments of various forces operating on the ground and how more force is being pumped in the existing security grid,” a senior government official told NDTV.

The meeting which lasted for over three hours was attended by heads of security and law enforcement agencies to review the functioning of Multi Agency Centre (MAC) of the Intelligence Bureau, responsible for tackling security challenges in the country.

In the meeting, Mr Shah stressed upon greater synergy between all the agencies to dismantle terror networks and their ecosystem, and to address the evolving security threat scenario of the country.

The meeting was held at a time when questions are being raised about the kind of intelligence being generated or lack of it in the Jammu region. No agency seems to have a clear picture as to how many terrorists have infiltrated and where have they been hiding for the past few months.

The MAC is responsible for collating data from all forces before presenting a clear picture to the centre. They are also tasked to make assessments about terror networks and law and order situations.

Officials who attended the meeting said Mr Shah instructed heads of security agencies from across the country and other intelligence and enforcement agencies to adopt a whole-of-the government approach towards national security.

He emphasised that the MAC must continue to work 24×7 as a platform for proactive and real-time sharing of actionable intelligence among various stakeholders, including last-mile responders.

As per the proposed plan this year, the MAC framework is poised to undergo a major technical and operational revamp to increase its reach and effectiveness.

New Delhi:

Tapan Kumar Deka, known as the ‘superspy’ with commendable expertise in handling terrorism and radicalisation related cases, was on Monday given a one-year extension till June 2025 as the chief of the Intelligence Bureau (IB).

Tapan Deka is a 1988-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the Himachal Pradesh cadre.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved Tapan Deka’s extension as the Director, Intelligence Bureau, for a period of one year beyond June 30, 2024, an order issued by the Personnel Ministry said.

His extension is “in relaxation of the provisions of FR 56 (d) and Rule 16 (1A) of All India Services (Death cum Retirement Benefits) Rules, 1958”, it said.

The rules allow the central government to extend in “public interest” the services of the chiefs of IB and Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), Cabinet Secretary, Home Secretary and others, beyond 60 years age of superannuation.

Tapan Deka, known as the crisis manager in the power corridors and intelligence fraternity, was in June 2022 appointed as the IB chief for two years. His term was to end this month.

He is considered an expert in ‘operations’ especially in Jammu and Kashmir as well as in the Northeast region of the country.

Tapan Deka served as the head of the operations wing of the IB for over two decades before finally taking the reins of the agency. He was also in charge of the counter-assaults during the 26/11 Mumbai attack in 2008.

Adept in handling terrorism and Islamic radicalisation related cases, Tapan Deka had also led the operations against the terror group Indian Mujahideen, which was behind a series of subversive activities across the country in the 2000s.

He was also deputed in his home state Assam to handle the volatile situation that arose following the large-scale violence after the enactment of the Citizenship Amendment Act in 2019.

Tapan Deka has been the go-to man for the government on the affairs of Jammu and Kashmir as he has vast experience in handling Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in the Union Territory.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)