Page 1 Intelligence Bureau (India) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

10-02-2014 15:44:08 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligence_Bureau_(India)

Intelligence Bureau
Khfya Bureau
Agency overview
Formed 1887
Headquarters New Delhi
Employees Classified
Agency
executive
Syed Asif Ibrahim, Director Intelligence
Bureau
Parent agency Ministry of Home Affairs
Website www.mha.nic.in (http://
www.mha.nic.in)
Intelligence Bureau (India)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Intelligence Bureau (IB) (Devangar: , Khfya Bureau) is India's
internal intelligence agency and reputedly the world's oldest intelligence agency.
[1]
It was
recast as the Central Intelligence Bureau in 1947 under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The
reason for the perception may be because, in 1885, Major General Sir Charles MacGregor
was appointed Quartermaster General and head of the Intelligence Department for the
British Indian Army at Simla. The objective then was to monitor Russian troop
deployments in Afghanistan, fearing a Russian invasion of British India through the
North-West during the late 19th century.
In 1909, the Indian Political Intelligence Office was established in England in response to
the development of Indian revolutionary activities, which came to be called the Indian
Political Intelligence (IPI) from 1921. This was a state-run surveillance and monitoring
agency. The IPI was run jointly by the India Office and the Government of India and
reported jointly to the Secretary of the Public and Judicial Department of the India Office,
and the Director of Intelligence Bureau (DIB) in India, and maintained close contact with
Scotland Yard and MI5.
Serving since December 2012, Syed Asif Ibrahim is the current director of the IB, the
first Muslimto hold the position.
[2]
Contents
1 Responsibilities
2 Activities
3 Workings
4 Constitutionality
5 Legal
Framework
6 Ranks and
insignia
7 Operations
8 Media portrayal
9 See also
10 References
11 Footnotes
12 Further reading
13 External links
Responsibilities
Shrouded in secrecy, the IB is used to garner intelligence from within India and also execute counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism tasks. The
Bureau comprises employees from law enforcement agencies, mostly from the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the military. However, the Director
of Intelligence Bureau (DIB) has always been an IPS officer. In addition to domestic intelligence responsibilities, the IB is particularly tasked with
intelligence collection in border areas, following the 1951 recommendations of the Himmatsinhji Committee (also known as the North and North-
East Border Committee), a task entrusted to military intelligence organisations prior to independence in 1947. All spheres of human activity within
India and in the neighborhood are allocated to the charter of duties of the Intelligence Bureau. The IB was also tasked with other external
intelligence responsibilities as of 1951 until 1968, when the Research and Analysis Wing was formed. The current chief of the organisation is Syed
Asif Ibrahim a 1977 batch IPS cadre.
[3]
Activities
Understanding of the shadowy workings of the IB is largely speculative. Many a times even their own family members are unaware of their
whereabouts. One known task of the IB is to clear licences to amateur radio enthusiasts. The IB also passes on intelligence between other Indian
intelligence agencies and the police. The Bureau also grants the necessary security clearances to Indian diplomats and judges before they take the
oath. On rare occasions, IB officers interact with the media during a crisis situation. The IB is also rumoured to intercept and open around 6,000
letters daily. It also has an email spying system similar to FBI's Carnivore system.
[4]
The Bureau is also authorised to conduct wiretapping without
a warrant.
[5]
Workings
The Class 1 (Gazetted) officers carry out coordination and higher-level management of the IB. Subsidiary Intelligence Bureaus (SIBs) are headed
Page 2 Intelligence Bureau (India) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
10-02-2014 15:44:08 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligence_Bureau_(India)
Insignia of Director
Intelligence Bureau
Workings
The Class 1 (Gazetted) officers carry out coordination and higher-level management of the IB. Subsidiary Intelligence Bureaus (SIBs) are headed
by officers of the rank of Joint Director or above, but smaller SIBs are also sometimes headed by Deputy Directors. The SIBs have their units at
district headquarters headed by Deputy Central Intelligence Officers (DCIOs). The IB maintains a large number of field units and headquarters
(which are under the control of Joint or Deputy Directors). It is through these offices and the intricate process of deputation that a very organic
linkage between the state police agencies and the IB is maintained. In addition to these, at the national level the IB has several units (in some cases
SIBs) to keep track of issues like terrorism, counter-intelligence, VIP security, threat assessment and sensitive areas (i.e. Jammu and Kashmir and
such). IB officers (like their counterparts in R&AW ) get monthly special pays and an extra one-month salary every year, as well as better
promotions. Apart from the IPS and IAS, IB also recruits from the Indian Revenue Service (IRS).
[6]
Constitutionality
IB was created on 23 December 1887, by the then British Secretary of State as a sub-sect of the Central Special Branch but there is no act of the
Indian parliament nor executive order relating to the functioning of the IB. In 2012, a PIL was filed challenging the legality of IB.
[7]
Legal Framework
In India there is no legal framework for its intelligence services, nor a system of oversight and accountability for covert operations. But , for the
first time since 1947 , a high official of the intelligence services stood indicted in killing when on 6th February 2014 , former Intelligence Bureau
Special Director Rajinder Kumar and his subordinates were named in charge sheet by Central Bureau of Investigation . It was for the alleged extra-
judicial execution of Maharashtra residents Ishrat Jahan Raza and Javed Sheikh, as well as two alleged Pakistani Lashkar-e-Toiba operatives.
[8]
Ranks and insignia
See also: List of police ranks in India
Ranks of Gazetted Officers (Group 'A')
Director Intelligence Bureau (post held by senior most Indian Police Service officer; and the only 4 star equivalent
to Armed Forces Generals in terms of insignia. However it's a post and not a rank.)
Special Director (equivalent to Director General of Police)
Additional. Director (equivalent to Additional Director General of Police)
Joint Director (equivalent to Inspector General of Police)mr.gireesh kumar pathanamthitta kerala
Deputy Director (equivalent to Deputy Inspector General of Police)
Joint Deputy Director(equivalent to Senior Superintendent of Police )
Assistant Director (equivalent to Superintendent of Police )
Deputy Central Intelligence Officer (equivalent to Additional Superintendent of Police )
Assistant Central Intelligence Officer Grade-I (equivalent to Assistant Superintendent of Police / Deputy
Superintendent of Police (After 3 years of service) )
Ranks of Officers in (Group 'B')
Assistant Central Intelligence Officer Grade-II (equivalent to Inspector of Police).
Junior Intelligence Officer Grade-I (equivalent to Sub Inspector of Police).
Ranks of Officers in (Group 'C')
Junior Intelligence Officer Grade-II (equivalent to Assistant Sub Inspector of Police).
Senior Security Assistant (equivalent to Head constable of Police).
Security Assistant (equivalent to constable of Police).
There are different ranks of executives which adhere for managing and executing the goals of the organisation. Sometimes executives are
compared with state police service ranks which are different from the ranks in IB.
Operations
The Intelligence Bureau reportedly has a lot of successes to its credit, but operations conducted by the IB are rarely declassified. Due to the
extreme secrecy surrounding the agency, there is little concrete information available about it or its activities. The IB was trained by the Soviet
KGB from the 1950s on wards until the collapse of the soviet union.
The IB was initially India's internal and external intelligence agency. Due to lapses on the part of the Intelligence Bureau to predict the Sino-Indian
War of 1962, and later on, intelligence failure in the India-Pakistan War in 1965, it was bifurcated in 1968 and entrusted with the task of internal
intelligence only. The external intelligence branch was handed to the newly created Research and Analysis Wing.
The IB has had mixed success in counter-terrorism. It was reported in 2008 that the IB had been successful in busting terror modules. It alerted the
police before the Hyderabad blasts and gave repeated warnings of a possible attack on Mumbai through the sea before the November 2008 Mumbai
attacks. On the whole, however, the IB came in for some sharp criticism by the media after the relentless wave of terror attacks in 2008. The
Page 3 Intelligence Bureau (India) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
10-02-2014 15:44:08 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligence_Bureau_(India)
The IB has had mixed success in counter-terrorism. It was reported in 2008 that the IB had been successful in busting terror modules. It alerted the
police before the Hyderabad blasts and gave repeated warnings of a possible attack on Mumbai through the sea before the November 2008 Mumbai
attacks. On the whole, however, the IB came in for some sharp criticism by the media after the relentless wave of terror attacks in 2008. The
government came close to sacking top intelligence officials soon after 26/11 attacks because of serious lapses that led to the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
[9]
Heavy politics, under-funding and a shortage of professional field agents are the chief problems facing the agency. The overall strength of the
agency is believed to be around 25,000, with 3500-odd field agents operating in the entire country. Of these, many are engaged in political
intelligence.
[10][11]
Media portrayal
The Intelligence Bureau has been depicted in films such as Vande Matharam (Tamil, 2010), Bad Aur Badnaam (Hindi, 1984), Kahaani (Hindi,
2012), Jism 2 (Hindi, 2012), Mukhbiir(Hindi,2008). Thuppaki (Tamil, Telugu, 2012) and Madras Cafe (Hindi,2013).
See also
CBI
R&AW
NIA
References
1. ^ "Intelligence Bureau (IB) - India Intelligence Agencies" (http://
www.fas.org/irp/world/india/ib/index.html). Fas.org. 2008-05-30.
Retrieved 2012-12-09.
2. ^ Sandeep Joshi (2012-11-26). "Today's Paper / NATIONAL : IB, RAW
get new chiefs" (http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/ib-
raw-get-new-chiefs/article4135336.ece). The Hindu. Retrieved
2012-12-09.
3. ^ "Nehchal Sandhu new IB director" (http://www.indianexpress.com/
news/nehchal-sandhu-new-ib-director/716221/). Indian Express. 26
November 2010. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
4. ^ "Republic of India" (http://web.archive.org/web/20101203034615/http://
www.privacyinternational.org/survey/phr2003/countries/india.htm).
Archived from the original (http://www.privacyinternational.org/survey/
phr2003/countries/india.htm) on Dec 3, 2010.
5. ^ "The secret world of phone tapping" (http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/
the-secret-world-of-phone-tapping/1/122693.html). India Today. 9
December 2010. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
6. ^ "de beste bron van informatie over cengohyderabad. Deze website is te
koop!" (http://cengohyderabad.com/downloads/pdf/circulars/2010%2003%
2029%2033-10.pdf). cengohyderabad.com. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
7. ^ "Explain Intelligence Bureau's legality, HC tells Centre" (http://
articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-03-26/india/31239443_1_ib-r-n-
kulkarni-intelligence-bureau). The Times Of India. 26 March 2012.
8. ^ "Moment of truth for India" (http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/
moment-of-truth-for-india/article5665027.ece). The Hindu. 8 February
2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
9. ^ "IB, R&AW brass almost got the sack after 26/11" (http://
www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/IB-R-amp-AW-brass-
almost-got-the-sack-after-26-11/Article1-890202.aspx).
10. ^ "New IB chief has his task cut out - Thaindian News" (http://
www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/new-ib-chief-has-his-task-
cut-out_100128955.html). Thaindian.com. 2008-12-09. Retrieved
2012-08-10.
11. ^ Sudha Ramachandran. "Security cracks and the remedy" (http://
web.archive.org/web/20100106032546/http://www.dayafterindia.com/
jan109/national5.html). Archived from the original (http://
www.dayafterindia.com/jan109/national5.html) on Jan 6, 2010.
Footnotes
"THE INDIAN POLICE SERVICE (UNIFORM) RULES" (http://www.persmin.nic.in/EmployeesCorner/Acts_Rules/AISRule/IPSRules/IPS
(Uniform)Rules(Revised).htm). 1954.
"World Intelligence and Security Agencies" (http://www.fas.org/irp/world/india/ib/). December,2006.
Further reading
MacGregor, Lady (Ed.) The Life and Opinions of Major-General Sir Charles MacGregor. 2 vols. 1888, Edinburgh
MacGregor, General Sir Charles. The Defence of India. Simla: Government of India Press. 1884
Kulkarni, Sin of National Conscience,2005.
External links
The Intelligence Bureau: Indias Prime Intelligence Agency (http://frontierindia.net/the-intelligence-bureau-india%e2%80%99s-prime-
intelligence-agency/) By Maloy Krishna Dhar
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Intelligence_Bureau_(India)&oldid=594701413"
Categories: Indian intelligence agencies
This page was last modified on 9 February 2014 at 18:18.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to
the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Wikipedia is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.