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MUMBAI: India’s first regional unit for specialist anti-terror troops has opened in Mumbai, fulfilling a government pledge after criticisms of the slow response to last year’s attacks on the city.
The hub for some 250 National Security Guard (NSG) commandos, opened by Home Minister P. Chidambaram, is the first of four new centres across the country.
The others in Kolkata, eastern India, and the southern cities of Chennai and Hyderabad open on Wednesday.
Security officials say the new base — temporarily housed near Mumbai’s international airport until a permanent facility nearby is operational next year — will reduce incident response times drastically.
But security analysts said India still has a long way to go to improve its counter-terrorism capabilities, despite an increase in defence spending since last year.
Nicknamed the “Black Cats”, the NSG is modelled on the British Army’s elite Special Air Service (SAS) and the GSG-9, the specialist operations unit of the German police.
The Indian government recommended setting up regional units after the November 26-29 Mumbai attacks.