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National Intelligence Grid linked with NPR

27 Dec 2025 GS 2 Governance
National Intelligence Grid linked with NPR Click to view full image

Context

  • National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) has been linked to the
    National Population Register (NPR).

  • NPR contains family-wise details of about 119 crore residents.

  • This linkage allows real-time access for authorised law-enforcement and security agencies.

What is NATGRID?

Nature

  • A secure, indigenous intelligence-sharing platform

  • Enables authorised agencies to access multiple government and private databases in real time.

Origin

  • Conceptualised in 2009

  • Trigger: 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks

  • Became operational in 2024

Users

  • Central and State security agencies

  • Not accessible to the general public

Key purpose

  • Intelligence gathering

  • Counter-terrorism

  • Speedy investigation of organised crime

What is NPR?

  • NPR is a population register, not a citizenship register.

  • Contains:

    • Demographic details

    • Family-wise information

  • First collected: 2010–11

  • Last updated: 2015

  • Intended to be updated with Census 2021 (delayed).

NPR is the first step towards the creation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

New developments highlighted

1. Organised Crime Network Database

  • Being developed on NATGRID’s IT platform.

  • Enables secure data sharing between:

    • National Investigation Agency

    • State Anti-Terror Squads (ATS)

2. “Gandiva” tool

  • An upgraded analytical tool under NATGRID.

  • Capabilities:

    • Multi-source data collection

    • Entity resolution

    • Facial recognition

  • Can access family-wise NPR data of suspects or persons of interest.

3. Scale of usage

  • NATGRID receives ~45,000 queries per month on average.

  • Queries are:

    • Logged

    • Purpose-bound

    • Subject to senior-level oversight

Census and NPR linkage

  • Census 2027 approved (₹11,718 crore).

  • No separate allocation for NPR.

  • Government clarified:

    • No decision yet to update NPR during Census 2027.

Privacy concerns

  • Access possible even without FIR registration.

  • Government response:

    • Audit trails

    • Purpose declaration

    • Senior officer oversight

    • Checks and balances

Prelims Practice MCQs

Q. With reference to the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID), consider the following statements:

  1. NATGRID enables real-time access to multiple databases for authorised security agencies.

  2. NATGRID is a public platform that can be accessed by private individuals for background verification.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Correct answer: (a) 1 only

Explanation

Statement 1: Correct

NATGRID is designed to provide real-time, secure access to data for intelligence and investigation purposes.

Statement 2: Incorrect

NATGRID is restricted to authorised law-enforcement and security agencies and is not a public platform.

Q. Regarding the National Population Register (NPR), consider the following statements:

  1. NPR contains family-wise demographic details of residents.

  2. NPR is a citizenship register prepared under the Citizenship Act.

  3. NPR serves as the first step towards the creation of NRC.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

Correct answer: (b) Only two

Explanation

  • Statement 1: Correct

  • Statement 2: Incorrect (this describes NRC, not NPR)

  • Statement 3: Correct



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