ISLAMABAD: The government has decided that the National Counter Terrorism Authority (Nacta) would be responsible for maintaining and developing a central database of actionable intelligence and its timely relay to concerned quarters for counter terrorism.

The decision was made at a meeting of the Nacta executive committee chaired by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.

The meeting was attended by chief secretaries, home secretaries, chiefs of provincial Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) and concerned federal secretaries.

The National Action Plan (NAP) to counter terrorism, extremism and militancy was also discussed at length in the meeting with recommendations on every point from participants representing all four provinces, AJK and GB.

"The fight against terrorism is being undertaken for the preservation of the state and cannot be won without complete ownership and coordination between federal, provincial govts and the armed forces,” Nisar said.

The meeting was told that Nacta Helpline 1717 has already been established. Provincial govts were directed to establish a dedicated Helpline for swift response to all kinds of threats.

The respective provincial govts gave their feedback on the proposed actions being taken under the NAP and potential irritants in execution of various functions in coordination with the federal govt.

A comprehensive report on recommendations will be shared with the Prime Minister’s Office.

Last week, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif directed that Nacta be made functional with immediate effect, following which a meeting was summoned today.

Take a look: PM wants functional Nacta in anti-terror effort

The anti-terror body has largely remained dormant resulting in an absence of coordination among various intelligence and law-enforcement agencies which is critical to monitoring activities of extremist groups operating in different parts of the country.