India hosted the first-ever meeting of the Home Ministers of the BIMSTEC countries in New Delhi on Tuesday, 13 October 2026. Union Home Minister Amit Shah addressed the meeting and asked the member countries to work together against terrorism, organised crime and drug trafficking, News On AIR, the public broadcaster's news service, reported.
The meeting was called to discuss terrorism, transnational organised crime, narcotics, radicalisation, human trafficking, illicit financial flows and cyber threats.
Key points
- This is the first time the grouping has met at the level of Home Ministers.
- Mr Shah restated India's policy of "zero tolerance towards terrorism".
- He asked that no terror network be allowed shelter, recruitment, training or funding anywhere in the region.
- He called for mutual help in extradition and legal assistance, within each country's laws and treaties.
- On drugs, he said no single country can deal with trafficking on its own.
- The reports available on Tuesday evening do not mention a joint statement or any signed agreement.
What Amit Shah said on terrorism
Mr Shah said BIMSTEC "has emerged as an important platform for regional integration, economic cooperation and collective security", according to News On AIR.
He said India respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries and supports the peaceful settlement of disputes. He then asked the members for a shared commitment: that terrorist networks should not find shelter, recruits, training, money or a base for activity against a neighbouring country anywhere in the region.
He also pressed for cooperation in extradition and mutual legal assistance, in line with national laws and existing agreements. India, he said, has had significant success in bringing fugitives back from various countries.
Real-time sharing of intelligence
The Home Minister said criminal networks work across borders and make use of local weaknesses. He called for real-time cooperation among intelligence, law enforcement, financial monitoring and border management agencies.
He asked the member countries to exchange actionable intelligence through their designated nodal agencies, and to coordinate more closely on terror financing and organised crime. Quick exchange of verified information on terrorists, their associates, money trails and cross-border movement would add to the security of all members, he said, as reported by Swarajya.
Drug trafficking: "whole-of-region approach"
On narcotics, Mr Shah said the money from the drug trade feeds organised crime and terror financing. "We must adopt a whole-of-region approach," he said, according to Swarajya.
He pointed to two things that make the problem harder: the diversion of precursor chemicals, which are legal industrial chemicals used to make synthetic drugs, and drug deals done through the dark web.
What is BIMSTEC
BIMSTEC stands for the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation. It was set up in 1997 and has seven members: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The grouping links South Asia with South-East Asia around the Bay of Bengal.
What it means for readers
The subjects on the table touch everyday life more than most diplomatic meetings do. Cyber fraud, drug supply and human trafficking often run through more than one country, and cases stall when police forces cannot get information or suspects from across a border. Faster sharing of information among the seven countries is meant to close that gap. Whether it does will depend on what the countries put in writing after this meeting.
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What happens next
No outcome document, date for a second meeting or list of decisions had been reported by Tuesday evening. Any joint statement issued by the member countries will show what was agreed, including whether the meeting becomes a regular one.
