Private eyes to help in war on terror

THE GOVERNMENT on Saturday enlisted the help of India's private security agencies to gather intelligence against terrorists. The private security industry had offered to use its army of 50-lakh security guards ? larger than the combined strength of the police and armed forces ? for intelligence gathering.

THE GOVERNMENT on Saturday enlisted the help of India's private security agencies to gather intelligence against terrorists.

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The private security industry had offered to use its army of 50-lakh security guards — larger than the combined strength of the police and armed forces — for intelligence gathering.

Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil on Saturday agreed to the offer, saying it would be a "useful" exercise. The minister said the government "would like to encourage them" since "actionable intelligence" — inputs that help prevent tragedies — is hard to obtain.

"We know what is likely to happen, not when and where," Patil admitted at the Central Association of Private Security Industry (CAPSI) conference. K. Vikram Singh, CAPSI president, said the industry could devote to intelligence gathering part of the proposed 160-hour training for the guards. "We already have procedures for channelling this information… It would not be a problem to create a nodal body that the industry can interact with and pass on the information." atikku@hindustantimes.com