Challenges to India’s Internal Security

1. Table of Contents

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   Challenges to India’s Internal Security

Since the advent of independence, India is facing various issues related to internal security and over the years India’s internal security problems have multiplied due to linguistic riots, interstate disputes, caste and ethnic tensions etc. Internal Security has many constituents, and apart from external influences impacting it, below mentioned are some major challenges that pose threat to the internal security of the country.

• Hinterland Terrorism-International and National level
• Jammu and Kashmir impasse
• Militancy in North-Eastern State
• Left wing extremism (LWE)
• Money laundering
• Organized crime and its nexus with terrorism
• Caste and ethnic tensions
• Intolerance and Communalism
• Regionalism and inter-state disputes
• Cyber-crime and cyber security
• Border management
• Coastal security

Note: The above mentioned challenges will be discussed in detail in the following  few chapters.

2. External Security

• External Security refers to any threat that a country, a nation, a State or a nation-State perceives to its identity, its economy and its components, its stability, its borders and its population and in particular the feel of the people, their mental and physical health as well as to its social, technological and industrial infrastructure
• The threat can be perceived which has not been negated and real whose solution doesn’t seem to be materializing. A country is almost always in a state of threat to its external security, and it is perennially in a process of negating these threats through diplomacy, alliances, geostrategies, etc.

2.1 Challenges to External Security of India

In addition to internal security, there are also some major issues concerning the external security of India. The nature of trans-boundary issues such as organized crime and terrorism, the challenge of uncontrolled migration and fundamental changes in the way the societies are organized have blurred the boundaries of the internal /external security divide. Thus, some major challenges to the external security of India deserve a mention. These are as follows:

• Cross Border Threat: Most external threats emanate from an unsettled boundary dispute with China that has been forced on India and ongoing cross-border jihadi terrorism in J&K sponsored terrorism, supported by ISI and Pakistan-based Islamist fundamentalist organizations like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad who, in turn, are inextricably linked with international jihadi groups like Taliban and Al Qaida. Threat from Bangladesh assumes serious dimensions since it became a base for northeast insurgent groups like ULFA and Naga factions. Of late, it has also been serving as a conduit for ISI sponsored infiltration of terrorists along India and Bangladesh’s porous border. The nuclear threats from neighboring states and from jihadi groups have the potential of using nuclear weapons in the foreseeable future, significant being China-Pakistan nuclear nexus. The movement of large numbers of migrants, both legal and illegal, particularly from Bangladesh (illegal) and Nepal (legal), creates some persistent difficulties. These migrant inflows disturb established population equations across wide swathes of Indian Territory, and have contributed to a great deal of political instability and periodic violence.
• Challenges from Neighbouring Countries: The socio-political instability in neighbouring countries has direct bearing on India’s security as India shares a vast land and maritime border with its neighbours. Since bifurcation of territory which demarcated India and Pakistan in 1947, the two nations have had strained relation due to disagreement over a number of key issues, control of Kashmir, terrorism and infiltration through the porous border. All the neighbouring countries, with the exception of the Maldives, from time to time, have been used as operational bases, centres of facilitation, or safe havens, or as sources of material support, for insurgent and terrorist groupings operating on Indian soil. Bangladesh and Bhutan, at one time, provided safe haven to a number of insurgent groups operating in India’s Northeast, though the problem was brought to an end in Bhutan in 2003 and, since 2009, Bangladesh has also acted with determination against these groups on its soil. Myanmar remains an important safe haven for such groups even now, largely because the Government there does not exercise adequate control over some of its own rebellious territories, and due to increasing Chinese support. Maldives is also emerging as a potential source of Islamist terrorist facilitation, mobilization and activity. China has become one of the most significant sources for illegal flows of small arms to insurgent groupings in India’s northeast, and through them, to the Maoists as well. Nepal and Bangladesh remain important transits for the flow of large quantities of fake Indian currency notes that are pumped into India by Pakistan’s intelligence agencies.
• Development of Middle-East: Cultural, diplomatic, and economic exchange has proliferated between India and the Middle East since ancient times. This engagement has continued into the modern era. India has maintained a strong relationship with Egypt, particularly since both countries became the founders of the Non-Aligned Movement during the Cold War. India also maintains bilateral relations with Iraq, Iran, Syria, and the Gulf states, dating back to when the Arab spice trade dominated the region.Presently the security and political scenario of Middle East is highly volatile. With that as caveat, one can visualize five short-to-medium term challenges.
• Even after five years, it is too early to write-off the Arab Spring and the Arab yearning for change that has not run its course. While lacking an overarching roadmap, individual Arab countries will have to evolve a model that reflects and suits their social and demographic specificity. No country can influence or determine an appropriate model for another.
• The declining American influence in the region will continue with no other country or group of countries being in a position to provide an alternate leadership. Some external powers will try to carve out spheres of influence without dominating the entire region.
• ISIS, religious extremism and sectarian tensions are here to stay and political violence would continue to undermine the stability, territorial integrity and in some cases even viability of the state.
• The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is important but an immediate resolution is unlikely because both sides lack wisdom, foresight and political will. Moreover, it is not the core problem facing the region, and Arab and non-Arab countries have many more serious problems to worry about apart from the statelessness of the Palestinians.
• Oil prices will continue to be low and this will affect both the big and smaller energy players. The entry of Iran post-sanctions, will further exert pressure on prices. The low oil price will also affect the search for non-hydrocarbon energy alternatives like solar energy.
• Maritime security: India is a maritime nation, not just by historical tradition but also because it’s geophysical configuration and geo-political circumstances make it as dependent on the seas as any island nation. With 11 maritime states and island territories, India probably has more seafaring people than the population of most European countries. India’s maritime security challenges cover the entire range from low intensity conflict and piracy, all the way to major power strategic contests. Given its distinctive geography and the shift of global maritime focus from the Atlantic-Pacific combine to the Indo-Pacific continuum, the importance of the Indian Ocean Region in India’s national security calculus has greatly increased in the post-Cold War era and the more recent post 9/11 era. Increased activity throughout the Indian Ocean region due to expanding regional and global trade in goods, ideas, people, and resources has raised a new set of maritime security challenges. Among these are growing risks from non-state actors including piracy, terrorism, and trafficking; the impacts of environmental degradation, resource depletion, climate change, and natural disasters; and weak states and failing institutions. These diverse challenges confront an equally diverse set of nations bordering this region. The energy-deficient nations such as China, India and other developing countries have no choice but to import large quantities of energy resources from around the world especially, West Asia. The dependence on the seas to get energy products to sustain their economies is growing progressively. This also brings in the threat of these vessels and products being targeted by both pirates and non-state actors.
• Militarization of Space: During Cold War era, space became an essential adjunct for war-fighting on the ground, without becoming another theatre of combat. While militarization of space proceeded rapidly, the weaponisation of space was avoided. Because the weaponisation of space was avoided during the Cold War, it does not necessarily follow that weaponisation will continue to be avoided in a new era of asymmetric warfare. We can improve protection of satellites against some threats, but satellites will remain easy targets for space weapons designed to kill on impact.
• India’s space program has very strong civil roots: it began as a means to assist India in its development and has mainly focused on improving the everyday lives of its citizens. More recently, India has made a dramatic shift in the tone of its space efforts. Lately, the country has adopted a more militarized attitude, as exemplified by increased efforts by India to create an indigenous ballistic missile defence program. India’s space efforts could very well affect the long-term sustain ability of space and merits further attention
• Threats from cyber space: Detail discussion see under chapter-Cyber Security
• Competition for scarce resources viz-energy and strategic minerals- among countries: In 2003, the EU’s European security strategy identified “competition for natural resources” as a global challenge. According to the 2004 report of the high level panel on threats, challenges and change, appointed by former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, “shortage of natural resources can contribute to unrest and civil violence”. The UNEP expert advisory group on Environment, conflict and peace building noted in 2009 that “as the global population continues to rise and demands for resources continues to grow, there is significant potential for conflict over natural resources to intensify in the coming decades.” Resource scarcity is increasingly perceived as one of the greatest security risk in the 21st century. In the Indian perspective the external manifestations of links between India’s resource woes and security are discernible in ties with Pakistan and China. Some security analysts have depicted the Bay of Bengal and its significant deposits of natural gas as a future source of Sino-India conflict. China has secured a major natural gas deal with Burma and may conclude one with Sri Lanka soon. Water, meanwhile, is a key factor in border tensions between India and China. These tensions centre around one of the region’s rare water-rich areas, particularly Arunachal Pradesh state. The strategic significance of Arunachal Pradesh, therefore, goes beyond the issue of territory. Finally, India is deeply alarmed by Chinese dam building on Tibetan Plateau Rivers, including the Brahmaputra, which flow downstream into lower-riparian India.