Some recent reports have surfaced in the public domain suggesting that India’s anti-terror operations in the thick and mostly inaccessible forests of Jammu and Kashmir have not been as successful as projected.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The factual position on the ground reveals that while there have been casualties on both sides, be it Indian troops or the terrorists, the battle being played out in this inhospitable terrain reveals that the enemy is in a much weaker position today than it ever was in the past two-and-a-half decades. The fight is ongoing and far from over.

Terrorism and insurgency in India is primarily linked to political, religious, ethnic, ideological, identity driven, linguistic or socio-economic grievances. It is broadly divided into three distinct categories, viz. cross border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, terrorism in the hinterland and extreme violence being a part of ongoing insurgencies.

India remains highly vulnerable to attacks by terrorists due to its porous borders in the west, north and northeast, besides its insufficiently protected long coastline. Terrorists and insurgents entering or residing in India continue to receive lavish material support and funds from many sources, especially from agencies located abroad.

To counter this threat, India’s counter-terrorism ecosystem has adopted a multi-pronged approach that includes beefing up intelligence gathering, pursuing security measures proactively and seeking international support and cooperation to neutralise this debilitating and anti-development menace.

Over the last decade or more, India has demonstrated stronger political will to strengthen border security, giving a free hand to security and intelligence agencies to gather, collate, coordinate and act on information, enact stricter laws to combat terrorism. Internationally, India has reworked its strategy, to disprove foreign skeptics and address cross-border terrorism and prevent the financing of terrorists.

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