Published: 24 February 2026PIBDefence Security
MHA Releases India's First Comprehensive National Counter-Terrorism Policy 'PRAHAAR'
In February 2026, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) released India's first-ever comprehensive National Counter-Terrorism Policy and Strategy titled 'PRAHAAR', marking a paradigm shift from a reactive security stance to a proactive, intelligence-driven doctrine. The policy outlines a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, combining intelligence, law enforcement, technology, and international cooperation.
PRAHAAR is built on seven pillars: prevention of terror attacks; swift and proportionate responses; aggregating internal capacities through a whole-of-government approach; human-rights and rule-of-law based processes; attenuating the conditions enabling terrorism and radicalisation; aligning international efforts; and recovery and resilience through a whole-of-society approach. It addresses modern threats from drones, encrypted messaging applications, the dark web, and cryptocurrency-based terror financing. The policy instead highlights disruption of terror-funding networks under Indian law and continued action against terrorist misuse of information and communications technology through technology investment and private partnerships.
Institutionally, PRAHAAR anchors on the Multi Agency Centre (MAC) and Joint Task Force on Intelligence (JTFI) under the Intelligence Bureau for real-time intelligence sharing between central and state agencies. For Rajasthan, which shares a 1,070 km international border with Pakistan and has historically faced cross-border infiltration challenges, PRAHAAR's provisions on border security intelligence, radicalisation attenuation, and inter-agency coordination are of direct operational relevance.
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Which category does the release of India's first comprehensive National Counter-Terrorism Policy and Strategy, PRAHAAR, primarily fall under?
Explanation · Correct answer CPRAHAAR is a National Counter-Terrorism Policy and Strategy released by the Ministry of Home Affairs. It deals with internal security, terrorism prevention, institutional coordination, legal processes and whole-of-government response, so it is primarily a governance and public policy development, not a science-and-technology item.
Frequently asked questions
What is PRAHAAR and when was it released?
PRAHAAR is India's first comprehensive national counter-terrorism policy, released by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in February 2026. It marks India's shift from incident-based responses to a structured, intelligence-led counter-terrorism framework.
What are the seven pillars of India's PRAHAAR counter-terrorism policy?
The seven pillars of PRAHAAR are: (1) prevention of terror attacks, (2) swift and proportionate responses, (3) aggregating internal capacities, (4) human-rights and rule-of-law based processes, (5) attenuating conditions enabling terrorism, (6) aligning international efforts, and (7) recovery and resilience through a whole-of-society approach.
Which agencies coordinate the implementation of PRAHAAR, and what modern threats does it address?
PRAHAAR is coordinated by the Multi-Agency Centre (MAC) and Joint Task Force on Intelligence (JTFI) under a whole-of-government approach. It addresses modern hybrid threats including drone-borne terrorism, cryptocurrency financing, and dark web recruitment.
Which existing laws does PRAHAAR complement?
PRAHAAR complements existing legislation including the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 (BNS 2023), National Investigation Agency Act 2008 (NIA Act), and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
What is the significance of PRAHAAR for India's internal security architecture?
PRAHAAR is significant because it is India's first policy-level, whole-of-government counter-terrorism framework. It transitions India from ad-hoc, incident-based responses to a proactive, structured, and intelligence-led approach to combating terrorism.