The Hindu : Front Page : Kalam for "comprehensive security"

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 15, 2006

Front Page

Front Page

Kalam for "comprehensive security"

Special Correspondent

Identifies major components as territorial, internal, energy and economic security

CLARION CALL: President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam addressing the nation on the eve of 60th Independence Day from the state-of-the-art multi media studio at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Monday. — Photo: Rajeev Bhatt

NEW DELHI : President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on Monday exhorted the citizens and officials to pool national energies to achieve "comprehensive national security" to defeat "challenges to peace from across our geographical borders, from terrorism and violence and from scarcities created by rapidly depleting natural resources."

In a message to the nation on the eve of the 60th Independence Day, Mr. Kalam identified four major components: territorial security, internal security, energy security and economic security. "While we have the basic structure in the form of law, police cadres, intelligence agencies and judicial system, we need to reinforce them with required updates with a code of conduct. Every citizen, every group, every religion and every political and executive system should allow the law to function without interference," he said.

Recalling his visit to Mumbai after the July 11 bomb blasts, Mr. Kalam noted how "the whole city of Mumbai expressed its deep sorrow and determination to combat terrorism with unity of minds. We must do this with a great sense of urgency for when evil minds combine, good minds have to work together and combat."

Spelling out what it would take to mount a National Campaign to Eradicate Terrorism (NCET), the President said: "I believe the time has come to synergise our multiple agencies for forecasting and dealing with terrorist activities." Asking for "working together of the intelligence and security machinery both at the State and the Central levels," he said such "alert and dynamic movement would prevent hotels and homes being used as a shelter by terrorists and extremists."

Pointing out that "there is a floating population in transition through residential areas, hotels and other similar places that could unknowingly be used for wrong purposes," Mr. Kalam proposed "national ID cards" and stressed the creation of "special monitoring methodology for unusual and abnormal banking transactions."

Noting that true security meant energy security, the President briefly touched upon the topic of nuclear fuel. "The vast thorium resources of the nation should be harnessed by our scientists and technologists," he said. "I am confident that we have the capability to build our own thorium-based reactors."

Asking the political, administrative, scientific and industrial communities to "cooperate intensely with each other," Mr. Kalam wanted formulation of a "vision, integrated missions, policies, plans and programmes for such comprehensive security for the nation to be safe, prosperous and happy." He told the country that he would be asking the Government and Parliament to (i) formulate a Citizens Security Bill, (ii) formulate an Energy Independence Bill, and (iii) adopt a resolution that "India will be transformed into a safe, prosperous, happy and socio-economically developed nation before the year 2020."

National awakening

At the outset, the President invoked the theme of "national awakening" and catalogued his experiences from travelling within India. He saluted "the existence of an indomitable spirit to succeed with the confidence that `we can do it' across the length and breadth of India."

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