Anniversary of Mumbai Terror Attacks
On November 26 2008, terrorism raised its ugliest head in India. The entire world was dumb-struck for hours. A reign of terror swept India's financial capital, Mumbai. The high tides on the Nariman Point remained calm. A 60-hour drama where the God of Death danced to the tunes of gunshots. As many as 170 precious lives were lost.
Be it the HBO's riveting documentary - Terror In Mumbai, reconstructing the horrendous attack on India's financial capital or the “Sixty Hours of Terror: Ten Gunmen, Ten Minutes", a serial blog covering the terror strike, started by a Virginia University website to mark the first anniversary of the worst terror attack in India, musings and reflections and more importantly introspection on what went wrong, on one of the dreaded terror attacks in recent past are on not only in the country, but in many parts of the globe. The spectre of Mumbai terror attack still haunts the peace-loving people. They despise the scourge of terrorism.
Two years after the Mumbai terror attack, it is time for some substantial introspection. Mumbai mayhem has taught the country many lessons. As aftermath of the dreaded terror attack in India's financial capital, a number of security measures were taken. Coastal security was shored up, a special commando unit being trained and police equipment is being modernized — these are among many other measures under way. A year after the devastating 26/11 terror attacks, securing Mumbai is still a tough task indeed.
The 60-hour siege in Mumbai began on the night of November 26 and the security establishment was completely in the dark about the conspiracy of the terrorists, what turned out to be the most daring non-military attack seen in the country so far. The gallantry demonstrated by the Marine Commandos (MARCOS) units during the rescue operations is all-known now. They became overnight heroes for tens of millions of Indians. The Indian Navy has drawn up major plans to acquire five midget submarines - weighing around 150 tonnes - for its Marine Commandos unit for underwater surveillance missions and covert operations in high seas. The message is clear. Navy wants its forces well-armed to protect the integrity of the country.
For strategic purposes, the recent emphasis is on revamping the security apparatus on the west coast, which was also a safe haven for terrorists even during the 1993 serial bomb blasts. Efforts are on to ensure that police are now better-equipped to fight the well-armed terrorists. The state government plans to spend Rs.6.30 billion on modernizing its force. This will mean an upgraded anti-terrorist squad, better weaponry and equipment and state-of-the-art control rooms.
Recently, a high-level team of security experts from the National Security Council, the elite National Security Guard (NSG) and other security agencies took stock of the operational readiness of the civic agencies in the face an emergency. The team suggested some concrete measures for dealing with the menace. Connecting disaster management control rooms of Mumbai and Delhi with hotlines, using HAM radios and developing waterways in case the city's road and rail networks collapses are some of the key recommendations made by the group.
Even after two years, the atmosphere inside the Chabad House is still a gloomy. The terrorists entered Chabad House, Mumbai headquarters of the ultra-orthodox Hasidic Jews, situated inside the better-known Nariman House, near the southern tip of the city, on the night of Nov 26 and laid a bloody siege right till the afternoon of Nov 28. It was one of the last places to be freed of the terrorists.The perpetrators cut short Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg's life, head of the Mumbai headquarters of the Chabad House and his pregnant wife Rivka and four others. Today after Two years, the Chabad House is a regular tourist spot with visitors making their way past crowded by-lanes. The shops and houses are back in action, the rattle of gunfire faded into memory. Every inch of the historic house is riddled with bullets. Construction work is underway but the reminders of the ghastly attack stand out. Recollecting the attack, Daaniel, 22, who lives nearby, sheds a tear. "I remember clearly, the day I went to see the revered rabbi's bullet-ridden body. Bullets had pierced virtually every inch of his frail body; later we learnt that he succumbed to 42 gunshots. Even his wife, Rivka who was five-months pregnant, was not spared.”
For the Jews who continue to live in the city of Mumbai, things aren't the same. Some of them continue to live in fear, while others are perturbed about missing their regular prayer schedule. "The future is bleak for us Jews in Mumbai. Since the 26/11 attacks, the Israeli government has issued two warnings to us against upcoming attacks on Jews in the city," says Daniel.For the family of Late Sushilkumar Sharma, life and death, celebration and mourning, all came together. Sharma crumpled to a hail of bullets on his son's 13th birthday just as the party was under way. The 48-year-old assistant chief ticketing inspector with Central Railway (CR) joined duty at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST), promising to be back before son Aditya cut his cake. But that was a date never to be kept. His 45-year-old wife Ragini and their sons Aditya, now getting ready for his father's first death anniversary and his 14th birthday, and 16-year-old Siddhant only blame their ill luck. As the nation remembers the 170 who died when terrorists laid a three-day bloody siege over India's financial capital, the Sharmas remember the husband and the father.
A terror-free world is every body's desire. We want peace. Terrorism is an anathema to civilization. It degrades human beings into sub-human level. The only way out of it is to build up a strong world opinion against this global menace and partner the whole world in the war against the terror. It’s the time to uproot terrorism from the ground and the minds where it is panted. And then only we can envisage a safer world. May we not come across another 26/11 anywhere in the world.
we can wait years while terrorism grows. The victims of the Mumbai attack are still waiting for justice and we are promising that it will be delivered. Great!