Home minister Rajnath Singh outlined centre's new push for upgrading intelligence agencies.
With terrorists using social media for propaganda and new security threats emerging, Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said the government is working on strengthening anti-terror laws.
Addressing intelligence agencies' heads, the Mr Singh said the government remains committed to punishing terrorists and is working on strengthening both the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and the National Investigation Agency Act.
"We are considering legal protection for undercover operations, use of intelligence collected as evidence and entire gamut of issues relevant to combating terrorism," Mr Singh said.
The government is also working to upgrade capacities of specialized agencies such as Computer Emergency Response Team and Center for Development of Advanced Computing to take on more sophisticated terror threats. Outlining the government's plans Mr Singh said that a sum of Rs 324 crores had been allocated for these purposes.
On the question of low rates of conviction in terror investigations, Mr Singh said that the government was looking to provide legal basis to evidence collected during undercover investigations. He noted that as per the National Crime Records Bureau, conviction rates remain very low and that is why quality of investigation is crucial in ensuring justice.
On the issue of women safety, Mr Singh said the government is concerned about crimes against women. To investigate such crime dedicated Investigative Units on Crime against Women are being established in 564 districts of India. He said that in these units, one-third of investigators will be women and funds will be made available by central and state governments on a partnership basis.
"Apart from the quality of investigation at police station level, we also have to ensure proper courtesy to the victims and witnesses," he said. Singh said convenience of victims and witnesses must be taken into account when calling them for investigation.