India needs national security index: Defence expert

India needs a tangible national security index on the lines of the gross domestic product to truly qualify the well-being of the country and its citizens, former Indian Coast Guard Director General Prabhakaran Paleri said on Tuesday.

"National security is nothing but people's well-being. The people have to feel and it is many times more than the happiness index... anybody can feel happy, that is a different thing, but how to feel the well-being in a nation as a citizen," he said.

Paleri said the Forum for Integrated National Security, of which he is Vice President, will hold a three-day conclave on ocean security, 'Sagar - Discourse 1.0', in Goa from October 12.

He said that the participants at the event will try to identify elements of national security with respect to ocean terrain and how the benefits of the ocean can be maximised for India, as well as for other countries, by integrating the benefits with land-based national security governance.

"What they have to achieve is maximisation of national security, which has to be a measurable product like the GDP. It is much superior to the GDP ... which I say is national security index. This is possible," Paleri said.

The conclave at a South Goa resort will be attended by top military and defence policy experts from several countries, bureaucrats, and Union Ministers, including former Defence Minister and now Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, he said.

The conclave will also deliberate on issues like climate change, fresh water, trade and commerce and other issues related to governance.

--IANS

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