India responds to Mumbai terror attacks

The Mumbai terror attacks orchestrated by terrorists trained by the militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) based in Pakistan is being described as India's 9/11. But what differentiates this Mumbai terrorist attack from the various bomb blasts throughout major cities in India this year, is not only the scale, planning and the audacity of the attack, but also the mature and level headed response of Indian citizens to this cowardly terrorist attack.

Excluding the Indian Parliament attack, this terror attack was the one which was beamed live continuously into Indian homes as it happened for well over 50 hours. In almost all the earlier cases of terrorism, bombs and explosive devices were planted and timed to go off causing large scale destruction and deaths to hundreds of innocent civilians. But this was the first time when major landmark locations of Mumbai such as the Taj Hotel and Oberoi Trident Hotel, where the rich and influential personalities and celebrities of India and Western tourists are regularly seen, were targetted. This time the terrorists targetted both the rich and poor to cause not only the maximum number of deaths and destruction, but also to make a statement that they could strike terror anywhere in India at will.

The oft repeated term 'Spirit of Mumbai' which was commonly misused by politicians to cover up their administrative failures has been summarily rejected by all Indians this time. Enough is enough is what Indians are saying. Mumbai celebrities have commented on TV channels that Indians do not want politicians to come to Mumbai and make the usual political statements and try to gain political mileage for their own selfish ends. Although the BJP and the Congress leaders had decided to make a joint visit to Mumbai in a show of solidarity, it ultimately did not materialise.

The Government of Maharashtra in a predictable response has announced setting up of a security force exclusively for Mumbai along the lines of the NSG. But it remains to be seen whether this new security force will be actually used for Mumbai's security or whether it will end up as another security force for the protection of politicians who move around with Z category security themselves while the common man in Mumbai remains insecure and vulnerable.

After the hostages at the Taj Hotel, Oberoi Hotel and Nariman House were freed and the militants killed, the NSG commandos were given a rousing heroes welcome by the common man on the streets. The sense of patriotism among people was very evident and they said that we are all Indians first and asked politicians to stop dividing the country among religous and regional lines. A positive spin off from this gruesome attack would probably be the renewed interest among youngsters to join the Indian armed forces who are now being seen as the actual heroes of the country. The Government of India and the Finance Minister who were reluctant to increase the salaries and payscales of the Indian armed forces will now be definitely forced to do a rethink.

While many questions remain unanswered as of now, the coming few days will definitely shed more light on the modus operandi of the terrorists and their source of training and funding and their backers from abroad.

What India needs today is a comprehensive disaster management infrastructure and effective laws in place to deal with terrorist attacks of this unprecedented magnitude. But whether India's political class has the maturity and willingness to set aside their political differences and come together on a common platform to protect India and its citizens vital interests, is the moot question.

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