India's External Intelligence

Book excerpt: 2The Present Book Is The First Account By A Person Who Has Actually Served In Raw At A Senior Level. Though Not An Insider, He Was Part Of The Organisation For A Little Less Than Four Years And Was Able To See Its Functioning From Close Quarters. Since He Was Concerned With Signal Intelligence Rather Than Human Intelligence Operations, Most Of The Coverage Is Devoted To The Former. The Book Brings To Light Several Lacunae In The Functioning Of The Country'S Top Intelligence Agency, The Most Glaring Being The Anomalies In Procurement Of Equipment, Lack Of Accountability And Our Dependence On Foreign Sources, With The Resultant Threat To National Security. Some Of The Hitherto Untold Stories Recounted In The Book Are: -1. How Equipment Was Purchased From Foreign Companies At Prices That Were More Ten Times The Market Price By Altering Technical Parameters. 2. How The Security Of The Prime Minister Was Almost Compromised For A Few Pieces Of Silver.3. The Circumstances Leading To The Death Of One Of Raw'S Brightest Officers, Vipin Handa. 4. The Stories Of Moles In The Country'S Top Intelligence Agencies, Including That Of Rabinder Singh. 5. The Bitter Rivalry Between Raw And Ib, And Its Effects.The Modus Operandi Of Foreign Intelligence Agencies In Recruiting Moles In India.