Internal Security

About Centre

The Centre focuses on issues that challenge India’s internal security. Secessionist movements based on ethnic identities in the Northeast and Jammu & Kashmir have been contesting the Indian state through violent means for decades. The Left Wing Extremism movement based on Marxist-Leninist ideology is engaged in a struggle to overthrow the democratic structure of the Indian state. Intermittent terrorist attacks perpetrated by foreign and home grown terrorist groups have been disrupting peace and political order in the country. Infiltration, illegal migration, and trafficking of arms and narcotics are not only breaching the country’s international borders but are also aggravating its security situation. The research efforts of the Centre are focused on analysing the trends, patterns, causes, and implications of these threats and challenges, and suggesting policy alternatives. The Centre’s research agenda includes: left wing extremism, insurgencies in the Northeast India, cross border terrorism and militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, global and national trends in terrorism, management of India’s international borders and security of its coasts.

The Centre also undertakes various projects entrusted by the Ministry of Home Affairs and the National Security Council Secretariat on matters internal security. The Centre has a mix of civilian scholars and officers deputed from the armed forces and central armed police forces.

The Centre has a bilateral agreement to collaborate with the Border Security Forces’ Institute for Border Management and Strategic Studies.

Peace Gestures in Manipur: Will it Work?

Gestures for peace talks in Manipur by the government indicate a willingness to engage in dialogue with armed groups, which in itself is a step towards reconciliation. Equally important is to ensure that these gestures are seen as a genuine desire to engage with the real issues.

Namrata Goswami
September 23, 2013
IDSA Comments

Need to effectively manage the India-Nepal Border

Transforming the India-Nepal border from an ‘open border’ to a ‘closed border’ would severely damage the traditional socio-cultural and economic ties. It would be prudent to keep the border open but manage it more effectively through mutual cooperation.

Pushpita Das
September 19, 2013
IDSA Comments

Maoists’ Urban Movement

The Urban Movement has a defined role in the political strategy and military strategy of the CPI (Maoist). The Maoists envisage that they would mobilise and organise the industrial workers.

P. V. Ramana
September 13, 2013
IDSA Comments

Implications of New States in the Union of India

Creation of new states is likely to undermine India’s polity and governance and consequently the socio-economic progress. Cost-benefit analysis suggests that only in some respects the newly-created states have performed better.

Gautam Sen
September 12, 2013
IDSA Comments

Arrest of Yasin Bhatkal: An Analysis

The arrest of Bhatkal, head of the Indian Mujahideen, highlights the measures taken by security agencies including improved coordination in different states to apprehend a number of terrorists in the last few years.

Anshuman Behera
September 02, 2013
IDSA Comments

Women in Maoist Ranks

Women join as fighters and participate in raids and attacks on police. The military training they receive is as rigorous and strenuous as their male counterparts.

P. V. Ramana
August 20, 2013
IDSA Comments

Ambush on the LoC: Rethinking the Response

There have reportedly been 57 ceasefire violations of the LoC this year, which, according to the MoD, are 80 per cent more than the same period last year, and the number of infiltration attempts have doubled.

Vivek Chadha
August 12, 2013
IDSA Comments

Maoists Link in Odisha: Case of the Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangh

The Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangh (CMAS), an association of peasants, bonded labours and the tribal, is a classic case of a popular movement being hijacked by the Maoists to get their foothold in Koraput, Malkanagiri and Rayagada districts of Odisha.

Anshuman Behera
August 05, 2013
Issue Brief

Security Situation in J&K: A Reality Check

The June 24 ambush in J&K accomplished with proficiency and high level of coordination exposes the deceptive calm often showcased in the context of large number of tourists visiting the state.

Vivek Chadha
June 28, 2013
IDSA Comments

Nagaland: Political and Economic Assessment

Delay in coming to an agreement between the government and the major underground outfits is only creating frustration among a large section of the Naga society as well as internecine dissentions among the various factions trying to outbid each other.