House panel for One Intelligence Agency

Blaming lack of coordination between different intelligence agencies for the heavy loss of life in the Mumbai terror attacks....

Blaming lack of coordination between different intelligence agencies for the heavy loss of life in the Mumbai terror attacks,a high-powered Parliamentary panel has recommended the setting up of a joint intelligence agency that will even have the military spy network under its control.

In a report submitted in Parliament today,the Standing Committee on Defence,which is headed by Congress leader Balasaheb Vikhe Patil,said there is urgent need to constitute a Federal Central Intelligence Agency in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks the report called it a national catastrophe and deficiencies observed during the Kargil intrusion in 1999.

Coming down heavily against the government and the existing intelligence set-up,the committee pointed to lack of coordination between intelligence agencies and said even the military intelligence network failed to act in cohesion with other services.

Lack of coordination among different intelligence gathering agencies including those of the military intelligence resulted in the loss of precious lives of defence service and police forces personnel as well as those of civilians, stated the report.

The panel consists of leaders from across the political spectrum including BJPs Arun Shourie and Santosh Gangwar,Farooq Abdullah of the National Conference and CPM MP K S Manoj.

In its recommendation to the government,the panel said immediate steps must be taken to constitute a central spy agency that will also have the tri-service intelligence gathering network under its gambit.

The panel rapped the Ministry of Defence for lack of coordination between the Navy and Coast Guard due to which the 26/11 terrorists managed to reach Indian shores.

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It asked the government to put in place an effective mechanism for establishing better coordination and jointness between the Coast Guard and the Navy.

It also asked the government to set up a committee to reorganise,reform and restructure the armed forces on the basis of the Kargil review committee report and a GoM report of 2001.