By The Sampadak Express
Senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Parag Jain, credited as one of the masterminds behind Operation Sindoor, has been appointed as the new Chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), India’s external intelligence agency. His appointment was cleared by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet earlier this week.
Jain, a 1989-batch IPS officer from the Punjab cadre, will take charge from incumbent Ravi Sinha on July 1, following Sinha’s retirement on June 30. His term as R&AW chief will span two years.
Before this, Jain headed the Aviation Research Centre (ARC), a specialised agency responsible for aerial surveillance, signal intelligence (SIGINT), imagery intelligence (IMINT), and border monitoring. He is widely respected for seamlessly integrating human intelligence (HUMINT) with technical intelligence (TECHINT) capabilities.
Jain rose to national prominence for his critical role in Operation Sindoor, which enabled India to carry out precision missile strikes against terror camps across the Line of Control in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) on May 7. These strikes targeted nine locations, including key hubs of banned terror outfits Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba. The operation was powered by accurate, real-time intelligence led by Jain’s team.
With deep operational knowledge of Jammu & Kashmir, Jain is considered well-prepared to handle Pakistan’s attempts to revive terror infrastructure in PoK. He also brings extensive experience in countering Khalistani terror networks knowledge shaped through his tenure in Indian missions in Sri Lanka and Canada, where he closely tracked anti-India extremist elements operating abroad.
Jain played a strategic role during the 2019 reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir and previously held important law enforcement roles in Punjab during the peak of insurgency. He was promoted to Director General of Police (DGP) rank in 2021 while on central deputation.
As he steps into the top intelligence role, Parag Jain’s expertise in cross-border operations, surveillance technologies, and geopolitical strategy is expected to shape India’s external security priorities in the coming years.
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