Shome Basu
New Delhi, October 27: India’s external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), is hosting a 13-nation intelligence conference in New Delhi to strengthen cooperation in intelligence gathering, handling and sharing, with a focus on safeguarding participating countries’ security during both peace and conflict. The meeting is being convened by R&AW Secretary, Parag Jain.
Human trafficking, cybersecurity, narcotics and arms trafficking were among the key concerns discussed at the conference.
While official records indicate incremental annual increases in reported human trafficking cases, including a 2.8% rise recorded by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), advocacy groups and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) have highlighted the substantial number of cases believed to go unregistered, particularly in rural areas.
Odisha, Bihar, Telangana and Maharashtra have reported significant numbers of human trafficking cases. Odisha has recorded high numbers of trafficked minor boys, while Rajasthan has reported substantial trafficking of minor girls. Trafficking networks operate across international routes, including those involving Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries.
Particular attention was given to organised criminal syndicates operating cyber-scam and human-trafficking compounds in neighbouring countries, including Myanmar, Bangladesh and Nepal, as well as parts of Southeast Asia. Trafficked or coerced workers are forced to carry out digital financial fraud, cryptocurrency scams and so-called ‘digital arrest’ frauds targeting Indian citizens. Such operations often involve virtual private networks (VPNs) and bank accounts held in other countries.
Citizens have been urged to remain alert to the misuse of ‘mule accounts’, in which bank accounts are used to move proceeds of crime. Vulnerable people, particularly those lured by promises of easy money in India and Bangladesh, can find themselves unwittingly caught in cybercrime networks. Sources stressed the need for targeted awareness campaigns in vulnerable areas, alongside stronger intelligence-sharing and coordinated law-enforcement action.
Bangladesh National Security Intelligence (NSI) Director General Major General Abu Mohammad Sarwar Farid travelled to New Delhi to attend the eighth South Asian Counter Terrorism Conference, hosted by R&AW. The conference began on October 26 and was scheduled to conclude on October 28.
Besides Bangladesh and India, representatives from 11 other countries participated in the annual forum. Discussions covered cybersecurity, shell companies, counterfeit currency, border management, extradition and human trafficking, among other issues. Intelligence-sharing, particularly concerning the maritime domain, was also a key area of discussion.
Sources said the visit was part of a multilateral forum and did not involve bilateral engagement between India and Bangladesh or any other participating countries. No bilateral meetings were held or planned, they added.
Cybersecurity, phishing and narcotics trafficking also figured prominently, particularly in connection with the Golden Triangle, the notorious drug-producing region of Southeast Asia. The recent movement of ‘quota’—a raw form of heroin, as described by sources—into India has raised fresh concerns among security agencies.
With security challenges continuing in India’s northeastern states, intelligence-sharing has assumed greater importance in strengthening the country’s internal security and monitoring its land and maritime borders. Sources said R&AW and the Intelligence Bureau (IB) were maintaining close surveillance of cross-border threats and transnational criminal networks.
The case involving Matthew VanDyke, which was subsequently diluted in the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) chargesheet, has caused concern within the intelligence establishment, sources said.
“Security-related concerns also include the welfare and safety of Indian students studying abroad, particularly those from Kashmir in countries such as Bangladesh, Malaysia, the UAE and Oman, as well as the risk of their exposure to radicalisation by extremist organisations,” sources said.
The circumstances of migrant labourers working in participating countries were also brought up for closer scrutiny and profiling.
The possible use of foreign-funded channels to finance protests and the role of offshore accounts linked to key suspects could also form part of intelligence exchanges, sources indicated.
The participating countries, besides India and Bangladesh, were Sri Lanka, Nepal, the Maldives, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Myanmar, Brunei, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
