{
  "id": 8801091,
  "title": "R&AW anniversary in spotlight, how its first chief built spy agency from shadows",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/r-aw-anniversary-in-spotlight-how-its-first-chief-built-spy-agency-8801091",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-20T23:50:36.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Indian Express",
    "slug": "the-indian-express",
    "url": "https://indianexpress.com/article/india/rn-kao-raw-anniversary-intelligence-agency-10886630/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In the final week of November 1971, India's external intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), gained crucial insight. One of R&AW's founders, K Sankaran Nair, received intelligence from a source within the Pakistani establishment that Pakistan was planning a preemptive airstrike on Indian air bases in the western region. R&AW promptly informed the Indian Air Force, which subsequently went on alert. Pakistan launched airstrikes on December 3, but India was prepared. Thirteen days later, the Pakistani Army surrendered in Dhaka, leading to the birth of Bangladesh. The individual responsible for guiding this intelligence agency through its infancy was Rameshwar Nath Kao, the first chief of R&AW. Established in 1968, R&AW was created by Kao, a former Intelligence Bureau officer, upon the orders of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Kao's task was to build an agency that could operate at the highest level of national security. In the initial months following the agency's inception, Kao prioritized strengthening the collection of intelligence on Pakistan and China, as well as covert actions in East Pakistan. Within a few years, the agency managed to compromise General Yahya Khan's communications, providing Indira Gandhi and her team with transcripts of the former Pakistan leader's conversations. Despite Kao's efforts, he remained relatively unknown. Born in Varanasi, Kao faced challenges in childhood due to the loss of his father at five and his struggles with obesity. These experiences instilled in him a penchant for discretion, which he applied to his intelligence work. Kao's disciplined and detail-oriented approach, along with his ability to identify and nurture talent, played a significant role in shaping R&AW into the successful intelligence agency it is today.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Indian Express - India",
        "title": "R&AW anniversary in spotlight, how its first chief built spy agency from shadows",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/r-aw-anniversary-in-spotlight-how-its-first-chief-built-spy-agency",
        "published": "2026-09-20T23:50:36.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}