National Security Guard

The National Security Guard states its mission as:

"Train, equip and keep in readiness a special force capable of swiftly and effectively combating terrorism to live up to its motto Sarvatra Sarvottam Suraksha"[12]

The NSG is a 'Federal Contingency Deployment Force' to tackle all facets of terrorism in the country.[13] As a specialised counter-terrorism force, it is intended to be used "only in exceptional situations" and is not meant to take over the "functions of the State Police Forces or other Para Military Forces".[13] Yet, over the years its role has been expanded to provide personal security to influential politicians regardless of the real threat that they face.

However, in January 2020, the NSG was withdrawn from this task of VIP security to ensure its focus on its original roles as an elite counter-terrorism and anti-hijacking force.[14]

The NSG is trained to conduct counter-terrorist tasks, including countering hijackings on the land, sea, and air; bomb disposal (search, detection, and neutralization of IEDs); PBI (Post Blast Investigation) and Hostage Rescue missions.

The head of NSG, designated as Director General (DG), is selected by the MHA-Home Minister.[15] Since its founding in 1984, the NSG has had 28 DGs, in 31 years, with an average tenure one year and few months.[16]

According to the NSG website, it is modelled on the British Special Air Service as well as Germany's GSG 9 (Grenzschutzgruppe 9 or "Border Guard Group 9").[17][18][19]

NSG marching at Republic Day Parade, 2017.

In response to the criticism, due to the time taken by NSG units to arrive in November 2008 Mumbai attacks, from its base in Manesar, Haryana, the MHA decided to deploy NSG contingents in major cities across India like Mumbai, Kolkata (462 personnel[23]), Hyderabad and Chennai.[24]

The ranks in NSG are as follows:[8]

• Officers
  • (i) Director-General. (Lieutenant-General)
  • (ii) Additional Director-General. (Lieutenant-General/Major General)
  • (iii) Inspector-General. (Major-General)
  • (iv) Deputy Inspector-General. (Brigadier)
  • (v) Group Commander. (Colonel/Commandant)
  • (vi) Squadron Commander. (Lieutenant-Colonel/2IC)
  • (vii) Team Commander. (Major/Capt/Assistant Commandant/Deputy Commandant)
• Assistant Commanders (JCOs)
  • (viii) Assistant Commander Grade I. (Subedar Major)
  • (ix) Assistant Commander Grade II. (Subedar)
  • (x) Assistant Commander Grade III. (Naib Subedar)
• Persons other than officers and Assistant Commanders-
  • (xi) Ranger Grade I.
  • (xii) Ranger Grade II.
  • (xiii) Combatised tradesmen.

The NSG was established in the wake of 1984 Operation Blue Star, and the high collateral damage to Golden Temple, and civilian and military collateral casualties. Since its founding the NSG has been used in the Punjab in 1986, and Jammu and Kashmir. Some of the NSG's known operations include:

• 29–30 April 1986: About 300 NSG commandos and 700 Border Security Force troops stormed the Golden Temple in Operation Black Thunder I. The Temple was cleared and handed over to Punjab Police on 1 May 1986. 300 Sikh militants were captured, and there were no deaths or injuries for either side.[31]
• January 1988: The NSG conducted Op Black Hawk, a heliborne operation in the Mand area of Punjab. In this operation two terrorists were killed and one 7.62mm rifle was recovered. It was a massive operation, says former NSG Director-General Ved Marwah, though it did not get many spectacular results like in Black Thunder.[32]
• 12 May 1988: 1,000 NSG commandos (all ranks) surrounded the Golden Temple for yet another assault, in Operation Black Thunder II. Sniper teams armed with Heckler & Koch PSG-1 rifles with night scope took up positions, including atop a 300-foot water tower. While commandos from the 51 SAG divided into assault squadrons, the SRG was used to seal off the area around the temple and for tactical support. In the three-day operation between 15–18 May 1988, the NSG cleared the temple. 40 terrorists were killed, and 200 surrendered. In the mid-1990s, a NSG battalion was again deployed in Punjab to confront the Sikh rioters. There they began training the Punjab Police in counter-terrorism.[33]
• 5 September – 15 January 1988: Guarding of high-risk terrorist code-named 'Jack'.[32]
• 4 August 1989: Operation Mouse Trap in the Tarn Taran district of Punjab, in conjunction with Punjab Police and other security forces. NSG was able to demonstrate that it was possible to achieve area dominance at night, if the strategy and tactics were right. Ved Marwah calls this Operation Night Dominance.[32]
• 10 November 1990: NSG task force flown to Kolkata to rescue hostages of a Thai airbus by Burmese students.[32]
• 25–26 January 1991: The NSG was involved in Operation Ani Ben, on CI tasks in Baroda, (Gujarat) where Punjab terrorists were holed up inside a house. Two terrorists were killed and two AK-47s were recovered.[32]
• 1 July-20 September 1991: NSG employed along with SIT in search and strike missions after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.[32]
• 25 November – 16 December 1992: 150 commandos were deployed at Ayodhya during the Ram Janambhoomi and Babri Masjid crisis.[32]
• 27 March 1993: 52 SAG mobilised and moved to Adampur for rescue of hostages of Indian Airlines Flight IC 486.[32]
• 24–25 April 1993: NSG Commandos stormed a hijacked Indian Airlines Boeing 737 with 141 passengers on board at Amritsar airport during Operation Ashwamedh. Two hijackers, including their leader, Mohammed Yousuf Shah, were killed and one was disarmed before any hostages were harmed.[32][34]
• October 1998: As part of the implementation of the Union Home Ministry's decision to conduct pro-active strikes against militants, commando teams supported by IAF Mi-25/35 helicopter gun-ships began striking at terrorist groups deep inside the mountains and forests of Kashmir. After helicopter reconnaissance was conducted to pinpoint the militants, the commandos – comprising NSG and Rashtriya Rifles personnel – were para-dropped, along with supplies, into the area to hunt the militants. They had to rely on these supplies and their ability to live off the land until replenishment every fortnight or so. These missions are possibly ongoing.[33]
• 15 July 1999: NSG commandos ended a 30-hour standoff by killing 2 terrorists and rescuing all 12 hostages unharmed in J&K. The terrorists had attacked a BSF campus near Srinagar, killed 3 officers and the wife of another. The 12 hostages were kept locked in a room.[33]
• 21 August 1999: After interrogating three captured terrorists, the Delhi Police Crime branch confirmed that two more terrorists were hiding in a one-storied house in Rudrapur, Uttar Pradesh. Since the terrorists were considered armed and dangerous (their colleagues were arrested with 100+ pounds of RDX), the Delhi Police sought assistance from the NSG. A 16-man team arrived at the house at 4:45 am They began their assault at 5:30 am, before first light. The first militant managed to fire at the commandos with a pistol he kept by his bedside, but was killed an instant later. The second terrorist was shot before he had a chance to fire and died 40 minutes later. No NSG personnel were injured.[33]
• December 1999: Terrorists hijacked Indian Airlines flight IC814 from Nepal, and landed in Amritsar, Punjab. Within minutes of landing, the Crisis Management Group (CMG), which authorised the use of the NSG, was informed. But the CMG wasted precious hours and by the time the go-ahead was issued, it was too late. On the other hand, the NSG team on alert was elsewhere and no other team was raised during the delay. The hijacked plane took off before the NSG reached Amritsar Airport. The plane landed in Kandahar, Afghanistan where one hostage was killed. Finally, the Indian Government agreed to the terrorists' demands to release three jailed terrorists. The hostages were released and the terrorists escaped to Pakistan.[33]
• February 2000: Following the Flight IC 814 fiasco, the Indian Government decided to implement an Air Marshal programme. At least two NSG operators were to be present on flights over select routes. These operators would be armed with weapons firing lethal, but low-velocity, fragmentation rounds to minimize danger to the passengers and prevent penetration of the aircraft. Another decision taken was to deploy NSG teams permanently at eight sensitive airports around the country, especially those bordering Pakistan and the North East. This decision was to cut short reaction times for the NSG and eliminate hassles involved in flying the teams to the hijack site. It is not known if this plan has been put into action.[33]
• September 2002 – SAG commandos flew to the Karnataka state in India, to catch sandalwood smuggler and forest brigand Veerappan, in the wake of the kidnapping of a former minister of the state cabinet, Nagappa. They pulled out after suggesting that intelligence for the operation was inadequate. A small team was left behind to help, the hostage was eventually killed in December 2002.[32]
• October 2002 – Two terrorists attacked the Akshardham temple complex in Gujarat. NSG flew in, delayed by traffic in Delhi. They carried out assaults in which one commando was killed and another one was seriously injured and died after 18 months in a coma. By morning the two terrorists were neutralised and the operation completed successfully.[32]
• December 2002 – Terrorists attacked the Raghunath temple in Jammu. NSG was ready to be flown out but was called back at the last minute.[32]
• 26 November 2008 Mumbai attacks — Operation Black Tornado and Operation Cyclone to flush out terrorists & rescue hostages after multiple attacks across Mumbai, India. Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and Havaldar Gajender Singh Bisht of the Special Action Group were killed during the operations. Over 900 rooms were scanned, 9 terrorists killed and over 600 hostages rescued during the operation.
• 2013 Hyderabad blasts – Deployed in Hyderabad after the bomb blasts.
• 2013 Bangalore Bomb Blast - NSG was deployed in Bangalore after the bomb blast took place in the city.
• 2013 Patna bombings - A team of the NSG, which was sent to Patna for post-blasts analysis, said at least three more Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) were defused.
• 2016 Pathankot attack - An NSG team took part in the operation to neutralize terrorists where Lt. Col. Niranjan lost his life defusing a grenade or IED booby-trapped on the body of a dead terrorist, and 12 other members of the unit were injured. Six terrorists were neutralised in the operation by the NSG, Defence Security Corps and the Garud Commando Force[35][36]

NSG Sniper with a Barrett Model 98B during Republic Day parade in 2021

Selection is demanding and has a drop out rate of about 70–80 per cent.[22] Three of their 14 months of training in Manesar, Haryana, are devoted to the basics. Physical fitness training has 26 elements, ranging from a cross-country obstacle course to jumping from heights and across divides and scaling different kinds of terrain. One endurance test involves martial arts, target shooting at the end of an obstacle-ridden cross-country run. This is meant to gauge the candidate's performance under conditions of stress and exhaustion. Those who successfully complete the tests are sent for nine months of advanced training.

Before being inducted into the NSG, aspirants also have to undergo a rigorous psychological test.[37]

The training includes learning to conduct urban counter-terrorism, underwater operations, house intervention, counter-UAV and anti-drone operations, bomb detection and disposal skills, apart from various other specialisations.[38][39]

The National Security Guard has conducted international exchanges and joint training with foreign special forces, including those from Germany, Russia, United States, France, Israel and Australia.[40]

The National Security Guard utilizes the following equipment:

NSG operator with SIG MPX, M249 SAW and MP5 during Republic Day parade in 2021

• NSG soldiers featured in the 2019 thriller film Hotel Mumbai, which is based on the 2008 Mumbai attacks.[53]
• State of Siege: 26/11 is a Zee5 web series presents the 26/11 terror attacks from the viewpoint of NSG.

[54]

• Special Forces of India
• Paramilitary forces of India
• Central Armed Police Forces
• Special Protection Group

• Media related to National Security Guard at Wikimedia Commons