The Home Ministry has appointed the 1996-batch IPS officer of Rajasthan cadre, Binita Thakur as Director of NATGRID.
Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Binita Thakur was today appointed as Director of National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID), a robust intelligence gathering mechanism set up to track any terror suspect and incident, to enhance India's counter terror capabilities.
The 1996-batch IPS officer of Rajasthan cadre has been appointed for the balance period of her central deputation ending on December 17, 2016, said a statement.
Ms Thakur had been replaced by Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer M Imkongla Jamir as Private Secretary to Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani in July. After which she was put on compulsory wait by the Department of Higher Education.
The officer would be reporting to Secretary (Internal Security) Ashok Prasad in the Home ministry.
As per the Home Ministry's proposal, the NATGRID, which is still in nascent stage, in different phases, will connect data providing organisations and users besides developing a legal structure through which information can be accessed by the law enforcement agencies.
There are around 70 personnel, drawn from both the government and private sectors, in NATGRID.
In the first phase, 10 user agencies and 21 service providers will be connected, while in later phases about 950 additional organisations will be connected and another over 1,000 organisations in the subsequent years. The agencies include the Intelligence Bureau, local police and revenue and customs departments.
These data sources include records related to immigration entry and exit, banking and financial transactions and telecommunications.
In 2011, the Cabinet Committee on Security had given the clearance to the Rs 3,400 crore project, but the execution had slowed down after the exit of Home Minister P Chidambaram in July 2012.