Future plan . Home Minister suggests 'Real-time Information Exchange Line' to fight global terrorism

Union Home Minister Amit Shah Friday suggested that Interpol should create a permanent mechanism for setting up a 'Real-time Information Exchange Line' among global agencies probing terorism and narcotics for swift action.

Addressing the concluding session of the 90^th Interpol General Assembly, Minister Shah also recommended that “Interpol should prepare a ‘future plan’ for the next 50 years on the basis of its experience and achievements for the last 100 years.” Interpol member countries will have to rise to meet this challenge and the global police organisation’s role in tackling these issues is “very important.”

Shah talked about initiatives India has taken to create a national database on terrorism and narcotics so that police agencies can use information effectively.

He said that to stop crimes in today's era, the global community will have to think beyond the conventional geographic borders. "Across-border cooperation is very important to fight cross-border terrorism," he told the delegates from 164 countries. New Delhi is hosting Interpol General Assembly after a gap of more than two decades, which coincides with the 75^th anniversary of India's independence..

Top priority

The Home Minister also tried to take a veiled potshot at countries which try to defend their own perpetrated cross-border criminal activities as "good terrorists" but term others as "bad terrorists" from whom they face attack.

"All countries have to agree on the definition of terrorism and terrorist, and should commit to fight against terrorism together. The narratives like good terrorism, bad terrorism, and terrorist attacks - as big or small, both cannot walk together," he said, as India has been a victim of cross border anti-national activities.

He also exhorted all the countries to come together to fight the online radicalisation of youth, which has become a major challenge for law enforcement agencies in India and the world over. "We cannot treat this problem as a political problem," he commented.

He told the members that the Narendra Modi government is making efforts to empower the police force to deal with all kinds of challenges. For the police, the first priority is citizens' security, he emphasised.

He assured Interpol that India is committed to cooperating towards setting up a dedicated centre or convention and launching a dedicated communication network for counter-terrorism and anti-narcotics agencies around the world.

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