National Security Guards (NSG) is a Special Response Unit in India that has primarily been utilised for counter-terrorism activities and was created by the Cabinet Secretariat under the National Security Guard Act of the Parliament in 1985. The act was in response to the 1984 Operation Bluestar; the advance of Indian military to remove Sikh separatists who had seized control of the Golden Temple. The operation involved a significantly large number of military combatants; casualties, numbering in few hundreds, also involved civilians. The temple also suffered heavy damages. The NSG commandos were first used to combat the insurgency movement in the Indian state of Punjab in 1985.

The NSG (also called Black cats) operates under the oversight of the Ministry of Home Affairs and is headed by the Director General of the Indian Police Service (IPS). Present Director General of NSG is Lt Gen Jyoti Krishan Dutt.

Recruitment is done from the Indian Armed Forces and other paramilitary forces.It is a complete deputational based structure. The NSG has a total personnel strength of about 14,500. The Commando base is at Manesar, Haryana–122051. Tel : 91-124-2338157, E-mail : [email protected]. National Bomb data centre, Manesar : Tel No – 0124-2864640/42,Fax - 0124-2338271.