The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the country’s apex research organisation in the sector, suffered a security breach earlier this year that led to the loss of “crucial data” related to a range of areas, from recruitment to research projects, The Indian Express has learnt.
Documents reviewed by this newspaper show that ICAR constituted a six-member committee this month to submit “recommendations” regarding the “non-functionality of the DC (Data Centre) and DRC (Disaster Recovery Centre)”. The panel was also asked to suggest “suitable measures” to ensure data security and “prevent recurrence of such incidents in future”.
The committee, which was directed to submit its report by July 31, is yet to meet, one of its members told this newspaper.
According to sources, the breach occurred in April and affected the ICAR’s website, its server in Delhi and its replication server at the National Academy of Agricultural Research Management (NAARM) in Hyderabad.
“Data related to recruitment, from Technical Officers to Deputy Directors General (DDG) and job applications sought last year, is missing. The missing data also covers a large number of projects and related information submitted by scientists online and preserved in repositories. It includes email communications,” sources said.
The Indian Express spoke to several ICAR scientists, from Lucknow, Karnal, Hyderabad, Pune and Delhi, and all of them said there were “problems on the portal” and that they have raised the issue several times. “It is not only our email communication system that is not working. The problem is that crucial data of recruitment, finances, scientists, research projects and administrative work has vanished from the server and replication server,” said a senior scientist.
When contacted, M L Jat, Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education, and Director General of ICAR, told The Indian Express: “A few months back, there was some hacking of our website. Presently, everything is normal. The Ministry has constituted a committee in a follow-up of our data policy. That is a continuous process.”
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A senior member of the Council’s Knowledge Management division said: “Our website icar.org.in was restored in mid-May this year but another website icar.gov.in is still not working.”
The ICAR, which marked its 97th Foundation Day in New Delhi on July 16, describes itself as an organisation that “has been spearheading agricultural research, education and extension activities for productivity enhancement and diversification of Indian agriculture”.
Sources said the affected data was mainly related to Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board (ASRB), Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute (IASRI) and National Academy of Agricultural Research Management (NAARM), all of which function under ICAR.
R C Agrawal, the then DDG of ICAR who was also acting director at NAARM, said, “I am superannuated now. I cannot comment.” IASRI director Rajendra Prasad declined to comment. An official in NAARM said, “We are aware of this data disruption and are facing problems. But I can’t tell you anything else.”
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According to sources, the security breach was raised during the Annual General Meeting of the ICAR Society, chaired by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, in Delhi on July 7. Chouhan subsequently directed the formation of the six-member committee to be headed by Dr D K Yadava, DDG (Crop Sciences), ICAR.
Yadava did not respond to requests from The Indian Express for comment. A member of the committee said, “We are yet to hold a meeting as we are busy with several things. But we are planning to have one soon.”
