Security panel won’t be men-only: PMO

PMO officials say that Manmohan Singh was now personally shortlisting women security analysts and retired diplomats for a position on the advisory board, likely to be constituted within a week.

The term of the last NSAB—which is one of the three tiers of the National Security Council—and word is out that the UPA Government is going to have a smaller body in place. The NSAB, which was once an unwieldy 29-member board, may now end up with just 15-odd members.

There are going to be other sectors represented on the NSAB, till now consisting of security experts, retired diplomats, intelligence officials and journalists.

Manmohan Singh has asked for names from the social sector as well as the scientific community also to be put up to him and, in keeping with his style of making appointments, has asked for four-to-five options in each category for selection to the board.

The lists of proposed members has since been put up to him, prepared by National Security Advisor J N Dixit and other members of his secretariat.

The NSAB was constituted three times in the NDA regime but the full NSC, along with the council of ministers (comprising the big five in the Cabinet and the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission), the Strategic Policy Group (comprising the country’s top bureaucrats and the three service Chiefs) together with the NSAB met only once during the Kargil crisis. The board also met before the withdrawal of troops from the Indo-Pak border in 2002.

The new NSAB will have an institutionalised role in the UPA Government and will formally meet once a month. Regular meetings of the NSAB with the council of ministers and the Strategic Policy Group are proposed.