<p>Commandos of India's premier <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/nsg-commandos-to-undertake-regular-yoga-psychological-tests-31359">counter-terror force NSG</a> on Thursday created history as they scaled the Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, in their maiden attempt, a senior official said.&nbsp;</p>

<p>A seven-member team of the National Security Guard (NSG), led by Lt Col J P Kumar, successfully unfurled the Indian flag at the 8,848-metre tall peak at about 7am on Thursday, the official said.</p>

<p>"The team adopted the south eastern approach via Solukhumbhu region of Nepal," the force said in a statement.</p>

<p>NSG Director General Sudeep Lakhtakia congratulated the team, saying "Everest demands doggedness, tenacity, perseverance, courage and multiple skills to survive in toughest conditions. The NSG commandos have all these qualities".</p>

<p>The 12-member team was flagged off by Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba on March 29. Five other members of the team are likely to summit the peak on May 22 as per schedule, according to the statement.</p>

<p>This is the first expedition of the NSG to the Mount Everest and the force has been preparing for it since 2017, the official said.</p>

<p>The NSG, called as the 'black cats', was raised in 1984 as a counter-terror and counter-hijack contingency force. It has five hubs in the country to undertake these operations.</p>


Commandos of India's premier counter-terror force NSG on Thursday created history as they scaled the Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, in their maiden attempt, a senior official said.

Commandos of India's premier counter-terror force NSG on Thursday created history as they scaled the Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, in their maiden attempt, a senior official said. A seven-member team of the National Security Guard (NSG), led by Lt Col J P Kumar, successfully unfurled the Indian flag at the 8,848-metre tall peak at about 7am on Thursday, the official said. "The team adopted the south eastern approach via Solukhumbhu region of Nepal," the force said in a statement. NSG Director General Sudeep Lakhtakia congratulated the team, saying "Everest demands doggedness, tenacity, perseverance, courage and multiple skills to survive in toughest conditions. The NSG commandos have all these qualities". The 12-member team was flagged off by Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba on March 29. Five other members of the team are likely to summit the peak on May 22 as per schedule, according to the statement. This is the first expedition of the NSG to the Mount Everest and the force has been preparing for it since 2017, the official said. The NSG, called as the 'black cats', was raised in 1984 as a counter-terror and counter-hijack contingency force. It has five hubs in the country to undertake these operations.

India's counter-terror NSG commandos scale Mount Everest

<p>NSG &#39;black cats&#39; will now perform yoga as part of their daily physical training and undergo graded psychological tests under a new regimen to prepare them for counter-terror and hijack operations.</p>

<p>According to a blueprint prepared by the National Security Guard, the force has, for the first time, decided to introduce yoga exercises in the &quot;routine&quot; physical training curriculum of its commandos.</p>

<p>It has also decided on a regular process to tabulate the &quot;psychological attributes&quot; of each of its combat commandos, also known as black cats, in order to enhance their overall personality development.</p>

<p>The new steps are being taken as the NSG&#39;s mandate to counter terrorist and hijack bids, apart from protecting high threat perception VIPs, is very specific and requires &quot;physically and mentally fit personnel&quot;, who are trained to be the best commandos of the country, states the blueprint.</p>

<p>A Psychological Screening Test (PST) is conducted at present when personnel from various uniformed forces join it on deputation. But the NSG now wants a &quot;regular process&quot; of measuring the psychological attributes of a commando in the ranks.</p>

<p>The force will soon hire a psychologist as it has a &quot;pressing requirement&quot; of a qualified expert for not only choosing commandos at the entry level, but also for psychological counselling of trainees.</p>

<p>Similarly, it has sought the full-time services of an experienced yoga mentor.</p>

<p>Yoga, official sources said, is now mandatory for commandos but only specific capsules are being conducted in the NSG by experts from outside. Now, there will be a full- time instructor on the rolls.</p>

<p>The gradings by the yoga instructor and the psychologist will henceforth be reflected in the official performance records of the commandos, who are under continuous training when not out on an operation, they said.</p>

<p>The blueprint, accessed by PTI, states: &quot;Yoga consisting of asans, pranayams, prayer and yoga-nidra practice will have great effects on autonomic equilibrium between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems of the commandos.&quot;</p>

<p>It adds that yoga increases physical fitness, disciplines the mind and makes a person more focused and confident, increasing agility and body flexibility. It also helps in achieving a calm and relaxed state of mind, which is important for a commando.</p>

<p>The blueprint says the yoga expert and the psychologist will be based at NSG&#39;s main garrison in Manesar, Gurgaon, near the national capital and will work as part of the counter- terror training wing.</p>

<p>The &#39;black cat&#39; commandos of the NSG are segregated into two major units -- SAG (Special Action Group) manned by officers and jawans from the army and the SRG (Special Rangers Group) comprising personnel from the paramilitary forces.</p>

<p>The force was raised under an act of Parliament in 1984 as a federal contingency combat unit.</p>

<p>It has undertaken numerous operations till now. These include flushing out terrorists during the 26/11 Mumbai siege in 2008 and the recent operation when they were deployed to kill terrorists who attacked the forward Indian Air Force (IAF) base in Pathankot.</p>


The new steps are being taken as the NSG's mandate to counter terrorist and hijack bids, is very specific and requires "physically and mentally fit personnel", who are trained to be the best commandos of the country.

NSG 'black cats' will now perform yoga as part of their daily physical training and undergo graded psychological tests under a new regimen to prepare them for counter-terror and hijack operations. According to a blueprint prepared by the National Security Guard, the force has, for the first time, decided to introduce yoga exercises in the "routine" physical training curriculum of its commandos. It has also decided on a regular process to tabulate the "psychological attributes" of each of its combat commandos, also known as black cats, in order to enhance their overall personality development. The new steps are being taken as the NSG's mandate to counter terrorist and hijack bids, apart from protecting high threat perception VIPs, is very specific and requires "physically and mentally fit personnel", who are trained to be the best commandos of the country, states the blueprint. A Psychological Screening Test (PST) is conducted at present when personnel from various uniformed forces join it on deputation. But the NSG now wants a "regular process" of measuring the psychological attributes of a commando in the ranks. The force will soon hire a psychologist as it has a "pressing requirement" of a qualified expert for not only choosing commandos at the entry level, but also for psychological counselling of trainees. Similarly, it has sought the full-time services of an experienced yoga mentor. Yoga, official sources said, is now mandatory for commandos but only specific capsules are being conducted in the NSG by experts from outside. Now, there will be a full- time instructor on the rolls. The gradings by the yoga instructor and the psychologist will henceforth be reflected in the official performance records of the commandos, who are under continuous training when not out on an operation, they said. The blueprint, accessed by PTI, states: "Yoga consisting of asans, pranayams, prayer and yoga-nidra practice will have great effects on autonomic equilibrium between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems of the commandos." It adds that yoga increases physical fitness, disciplines the mind and makes a person more focused and confident, increasing agility and body flexibility. It also helps in achieving a calm and relaxed state of mind, which is important for a commando. The blueprint says the yoga expert and the psychologist will be based at NSG's main garrison in Manesar, Gurgaon, near the national capital and will work as part of the counter- terror training wing. The 'black cat' commandos of the NSG are segregated into two major units -- SAG (Special Action Group) manned by officers and jawans from the army and the SRG (Special Rangers Group) comprising personnel from the paramilitary forces. The force was raised under an act of Parliament in 1984 as a federal contingency combat unit. It has undertaken numerous operations till now. These include flushing out terrorists during the 26/11 Mumbai siege in 2008 and the recent operation when they were deployed to kill terrorists who attacked the forward Indian Air Force (IAF) base in Pathankot.

NSG commandos to undertake regular yoga, psychological tests

<p>Another day, another extremist attack, so what else is new? Recently it was in New York, a couple of weeks ago it was in Las Vegas, before that in London, and before that in Paris and so the list goes on and on. We could just as easily be referring to the seasonal Fashion Week held in these international hubs of design instead of the far grimmer subject of &lsquo;lone wolf&rsquo; attacks and terrorism.</p>

<p>Israel for example, despite its outstanding intelligence and security services, apart from a pro-active and robust approach to counter-terror policy and actions, reportedly faces at least one lone wolf attack a month.</p>

<p>The attackers themselves too span the globe. The New York attacker is of Uzbek origin, while we have had Afghans, Pakistanis, Libyans, Algerians, Palestinians and a host of other nationalities involved as well. If there is one thing in common amongst them, it is that they are homegrown, that is citizens of the country attacked, and in most cases followers of radical Islam.</p>

<p>Also, does the present attack by an Uzbek imply that Uzbekistan and probably Central Asia is the new focus of radical Islam? &nbsp;While one attack is hardly evidence of such a trend, it is worth recalling that Central Asia has been the focus of radical Islam for years. It is now a forgotten footnote of history that the erstwhile Soviet Union used the Red Army to suppress the Basmachi Movement, the Islamic Rebel Groups in Central Asia, in the 1920&rsquo;s.</p>

<p>Interestingly, documentation now available in the public domain suggests that the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 was in response to attempts to radicalise the population in Central Asia, though ironically the Americans got this completely wrong and gave it a massive boost instead, something they have been forced to confront over the past two decades.</p>

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<h5>The very individualistic nature of such attacks ensures that their planning and preparation remain very low-key, and therefore, extremely difficult for the intelligence and security apparatus to pick up or prevent.</h5>
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<p>The primary difference between lone wolf attackers and those belonging to terrorist groups, as we have all learnt over time, is that while they may be adherents of radical ideologies, they operate either alone or at best with an accomplice or two and are devoid of any support, logistic, intelligence or operational from any terrorist organisation.</p>

<p>This obviously limits the damage they can actually cause though, as we recently witnessed at Las Vegas, easy availability of high calibre weapons can tragically result in utter devastation. However, the very individualistic nature of such attacks ensures that their planning and preparation remain very low-key, and therefore, extremely difficult for the intelligence and security apparatus to pick up or prevent. The evolving nature of this threat makes existing counter - terror architecture and processes incapable of combating such threats effectively.</p>

<p>It is nobody&rsquo;s case that counter-terror intervention groups, such as the Special Action Groups of the NSG, have become redundant because it is impossible to foresee what tactics terrorists may employ in the future. Thus, hostage rescue and building/aircraft/train/ship intervention continue to be essential tasks for which specialised units must be kept trained and ready.</p>

<p>What however is emerging as absolutely essential to deal with lone wolf attacks is the necessity to reinforce beat cops and armed policemen with highly trained officers, both in and out of uniform, suitably equipped to respond instantaneously to ongoing situations. In this respect, the United Kingdom has been pro-active in establishing a high-level Counter-Terrorism Committee that is responsible for formulating the national Counter Terrorism and Domestic Extremism strategy.</p>

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<h5>It is a shameful, but unquestionable fact that India&#39;s counter-terrorism architecture is not much better than it was at the time of the Mumbai attacks, where it failed miserably.</h5>
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<p>Also, through its National Counter Terrorism Policing Headquarters it coordinates and controls specialised investigative and immediate intervention units, the CTC and CTU&rsquo;s. All of this backed by an effective database. It is no wonder then that the three attackers involved in the London Bridge terror incident in June this year were neutralised within eight minutes.</p>

<p>Though we in this country have not been subjected to lone wolf attacks, the reason for which needs to be analysed in depth, there is little doubt that we need to put in place systems to be able to deal with such a threat. It is, in fact, utter criminal negligence on the part of our political class that has led to the stalling of the establishment of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) projects.</p>

<p>It is a shameful, but unquestionable fact that our counter-terrorism architecture is not much better than it was at the time of the Mumbai attacks, where it failed miserably. It is high time that our political and security establishment get a move on and do what they are paid for, resignations and bluster after the event means little.</p>


Security establishment of India needs to work on and develop a better counter-terrorism architecture to track and avoid terrorist attacks

Another day, another extremist attack, so what else is new? Recently it was in New York, a couple of weeks ago it was in Las Vegas, before that in London, and before that in Paris and so the list goes on and on. We could just as easily be referring to the seasonal Fashion Week held in these international hubs of design instead of the far grimmer subject of ‘lone wolf’ attacks and terrorism. Israel for example, despite its outstanding intelligence and security services, apart from a pro-active and robust approach to counter-terror policy and actions, reportedly faces at least one lone wolf attack a month. The attackers themselves too span the globe. The New York attacker is of Uzbek origin, while we have had Afghans, Pakistanis, Libyans, Algerians, Palestinians and a host of other nationalities involved as well. If there is one thing in common amongst them, it is that they are homegrown, that is citizens of the country attacked, and in most cases followers of radical Islam. Also, does the present attack by an Uzbek imply that Uzbekistan and probably Central Asia is the new focus of radical Islam? While one attack is hardly evidence of such a trend, it is worth recalling that Central Asia has been the focus of radical Islam for years. It is now a forgotten footnote of history that the erstwhile Soviet Union used the Red Army to suppress the Basmachi Movement, the Islamic Rebel Groups in Central Asia, in the 1920’s. Interestingly, documentation now available in the public domain suggests that the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 was in response to attempts to radicalise the population in Central Asia, though ironically the Americans got this completely wrong and gave it a massive boost instead, something they have been forced to confront over the past two decades. The very individualistic nature of such attacks ensures that their planning and preparation remain very low-key, and therefore, extremely difficult for the intelligence and security apparatus to pick up or prevent. × The primary difference between lone wolf attackers and those belonging to terrorist groups, as we have all learnt over time, is that while they may be adherents of radical ideologies, they operate either alone or at best with an accomplice or two and are devoid of any support, logistic, intelligence or operational from any terrorist organisation. This obviously limits the damage they can actually cause though, as we recently witnessed at Las Vegas, easy availability of high calibre weapons can tragically result in utter devastation. However, the very individualistic nature of such attacks ensures that their planning and preparation remain very low-key, and therefore, extremely difficult for the intelligence and security apparatus to pick up or prevent. The evolving nature of this threat makes existing counter - terror architecture and processes incapable of combating such threats effectively. It is nobody’s case that counter-terror intervention groups, such as the Special Action Groups of the NSG, have become redundant because it is impossible to foresee what tactics terrorists may employ in the future. Thus, hostage rescue and building/aircraft/train/ship intervention continue to be essential tasks for which specialised units must be kept trained and ready. What however is emerging as absolutely essential to deal with lone wolf attacks is the necessity to reinforce beat cops and armed policemen with highly trained officers, both in and out of uniform, suitably equipped to respond instantaneously to ongoing situations. In this respect, the United Kingdom has been pro-active in establishing a high-level Counter-Terrorism Committee that is responsible for formulating the national Counter Terrorism and Domestic Extremism strategy. It is a shameful, but unquestionable fact that India's counter-terrorism architecture is not much better than it was at the time of the Mumbai attacks, where it failed miserably. × Also, through its National Counter Terrorism Policing Headquarters it coordinates and controls specialised investigative and immediate intervention units, the CTC and CTU’s. All of this backed by an effective database. It is no wonder then that the three attackers involved in the London Bridge terror incident in June this year were neutralised within eight minutes. Though we in this country have not been subjected to lone wolf attacks, the reason for which needs to be analysed in depth, there is little doubt that we need to put in place systems to be able to deal with such a threat. It is, in fact, utter criminal negligence on the part of our political class that has led to the stalling of the establishment of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) projects. It is a shameful, but unquestionable fact that our counter-terrorism architecture is not much better than it was at the time of the Mumbai attacks, where it failed miserably. It is high time that our political and security establishment get a move on and do what they are paid for, resignations and bluster after the event means little.

The New York terror attack calls for a changed counter-terror response

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