The Ministry of Home Affairs has unveiled 'PRAHAAR' as India's first comprehensive National Counter Terrorism Policy & Strategy on February 23, 2026. This policy provides a national counter-terrorism framework for preventing and responding to terrorist activities and radicalization through coordinated "whole of government" and "whole of society" approaches.
The PRAHAAR strategy is built upon seven foundational pillars: prevention of terror attacks to protect Indian citizens and interests; swift and proportionate responses to threats; aggregation of internal capacities for synergistic whole-of-government approach; human rights and Rule of Law based mitigation processes; attenuation of conditions conducive to terrorism including radicalization; alignment and shaping of international counter-terrorism efforts; and recovery and resilience through whole-of-society approach.
The policy shifts India from a reactive security stance to a proactive doctrine by formalizing real-time intelligence sharing through the Multi Agency Centre (MAC), securing critical infrastructure, and deploying a coordinated chain of command between State agencies/Police and Specialized Central Forces like the National Security Guard (NSG). It integrates cutting-edge technology while strictly upholding Rule of Law and human rights, and implements community-collaborative counter-radicalization modules to dismantle the terror ecosystem.
Significantly, the policy addresses terror financing through tracing crypto wallets, choking dark web crowdsourcing, and seizing assets through Central Agencies. It aligns with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards and utilizes international treaties to block cross-border state-sponsored terror funding networks.
The Government of India is committed to progressive and phased implementation of the strategy, prioritizing immediate institutional and systems integration while assessing performance outcomes through layered oversight mechanisms. A key monitoring mechanism includes organizing Annual Anti-Terror Conferences by the NIA under the Ministry of Home Affairs, which serve as platforms to review and strengthen counter-terrorism strategy by bringing together senior officials from law enforcement agencies, intelligence organizations, security forces, policymakers, and legal experts.
These conferences enable stakeholders to assess effectiveness of existing measures, identify operational/administrative gaps and preparedness, recommend policy, legal and institutional reforms, and promote collaboration and capacity building for a coordinated national response to evolving security challenges.