New Delhi, Dec. 15: The Union cabinet today approved amendments to a 40-year-old law and gave the go-ahead for a national investigation agency modelled on America’s FBI as the government geared up to tackle the menace of terrorism.

A proposal to amend the CISF act so that the central industrial force could protect private installations also got the cabinet’s nod, official sources said.

Bills will be tabled in Parliament this week with the proposed changes.

Sources said the cabinet okayed amendments to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, to create a tough legal framework and added that the big break was that finally, a national agency to fight terrorism was close to reality.

The proposed NIA, structured on the Federal Bureau of Investigation, will be formed under the amended provisions of the 1967 law.

The act already includes provisions that were first part of the now-defunct anti-terror law (Tada) and then the Prevention of Terrorism Act, which was repealed, too.

Earlier, many states had opposed the formation of a national probe agency, saying it was against India’s federal structure. Police is a state subject under the Constitution, and although the CBI investigates state crimes, it cannot enter the scene unless the state government concerned expresses its willingness.

To allay the fears of the states, the home ministry had said they would have a say in the new agency. After the Mumbai attacks, however, there was little opposition when the Prime Minister said a federal agency “should” be set up.

According to amendments to the CISF act, the paramilitary force will now also protect private companies, which will have to bear the expenses. The cabinet had earlier approved an additional 40,000 personnel for the 1 lakh-strong force.

A proposal for a new terror law that could have allowed “unlimited detention” by the police was, however, rejected by the cabinet, the sources said.

Pawar salvo

Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar is said to have asked in strong terms why only politicians were held accountable and heads did not roll in the bureaucracy after the Mumbai attacks. The Prime Minister is understood to have asked the cabinet secretary to look into the matter.