New Delhi: Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah Friday inaugurated the two-day Anti-Terrorism Conference-2025 in the national capital. The conference is being organised by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the Ministry of Home Affairs and brings together senior law-enforcement officials, counter-terrorism experts and policymakers from across the country.
The Home Minister also unveiled the updated Crime Manual prepared by the NIA, along with the launch of an Organised Crime Network Database and the Lost, Looted and Recovered Weapon Database. The event was attended by Union Ministers of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai and Bandi Sanjay Kumar, the Union Home Secretary, Secretary (R&AW), Director General of NIA, senior police officers from States and Union Territories, officials from central agencies, and experts from fields including law, forensics and technology.
Addressing the conference, Amit Shah said that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of zero tolerance against terrorism, the Anti-Terrorism Conference has emerged as a key national platform to address evolving security challenges. He said the conference, now held annually, focuses on actionable outcomes rather than deliberations alone, contributing to the strengthening of India’s anti-terror security framework.
The Home Minister said the conference aims to analyse terrorist incidents in India and globally over the past year, examine intelligence inputs and accordingly upgrade counter-terrorism strategies. He noted that the changing nature of terrorism, driven increasingly by technology, requires security agencies to anticipate future and often invisible threats.
Highlighting the newly launched initiatives, Shah urged state police leadership to ensure effective use of the updated crime manual for investigations and prosecution. He said the weapons e-database and the organised crime network database would help uncover links between organised crime and terrorism and called upon states to dismantle such networks in coordination with the NIA, CBI and Intelligence Bureau.
Referring to recent incidents, the Home Minister said the Baisaran Valley attack was aimed at disturbing communal harmony and undermining development and tourism in Kashmir. He said intelligence-based operations led to the neutralisation of the terrorists, sending a strong message to Pakistan, and added that the investigation into the Pahalgam attack has been completed and its findings will expose Pakistan’s role at international forums.
Amit Shah also praised security agencies for preventing a major incident in Delhi by dismantling an explosives network in advance. He described the investigations into the Pahalgam and Delhi cases as examples of exceptional and watertight policing, demonstrating the importance of constant vigilance.
Stressing coordination, Shah said a new standard of cooperation has been established through platforms such as the DGP Conference, Security Strategy Conference, N-CORD meetings and the Anti-Terrorism Conference. He called for the early implementation of a common Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) structure across states to ensure operational uniformity, effective intelligence sharing and coordinated counter-terror actions.
The Home Minister emphasised that India’s growing economic and geopolitical stature demands heightened internal security preparedness. He advocated a national-level security grid capable of countering cyber threats, information warfare and hybrid terrorism, and urged agencies to move from a “Need to Know” approach to a “Duty to Share” framework.
Reiterating the government’s resolve, Shah said databases on terrorists and criminals must become core assets of the zero-terror policy. He also supported the use of trial-in-absentia against fugitives and called upon all agencies and state police forces to function as a unified “Team India” to safeguard national security for the future.
If you want, I can shorten it for front-page use, tighten it to 600–700 words, or adapt it for an Urdu or bilingual print edition.
