Sitting in NY in my hotel room, trying to work out what is actually going on ! I woke up to search the internet and understood that it was all over. Now I am watching CNN and watching images of the battle still going on ! And now I am getting texts of people I or my friends knew that died in the attacks. How come such a small group continue to hold the Indian armed forces and Mumbai’s security and police force off ? And what are all the people doing hanging around watching the goings ? There is something completely tragic and surreal about what I am watching.
we are getting immune by frequency of such attacks, i bet people and our government will foget and fogive like a bad dream
Hi, didn’t realize you were here in NY. It is indeed somewhat vulgar (if you know what I mean)to watch live this live televised tragedy. Don’t know if you saw this interview of a man “Jonathan Ehrlich” who has just returned from a stay in India where he was on business. He had been at the Oberoi and was one of the lucky survivors. What he said was so touching. He said he had no time to think about anything, even fear, and all he could think was to “get out”. And he talked about the wonderful people of India. He said “Mumbai is NY, NY is Vancouver…. it does not matter to the terrorists whether they are attacking a Jew, a Hindu, a Moslem…” they were after death.” (I am just paraphrasing him.).
He urged people in the West to not allow these terrorists to win. He urged everyone to visit India and have a vacation in Mumbai. He said the people of Mumbai are the “most amazing people in the world”.
Such kind and loving words after such a terrifying ordeal. He is now safely back with family.
But he does make you feel so good being an Indian, inspite of this terrible tragedy going on.
That is what we have to remember. We cannot let religion, nationality, colour, caste, etc. divide us. If we do, these terrorists and their supporters will win.
Let us say a prayer for all who were in Mumbai, for friends and relatives who lost someone or who have been injured. Let us pray that this violence ends quickly.
Hi,
We can just assume, I thnk the reason for such slow progress is, that this is not a god damn battle field. There are Kids, Women, old people of all caste, color, religion.
The commandos are suppose to save as many people as possible, and kill the terrorists.
I think what the Mumbai Police and Commandos are doing is commendable.
But what about our politicians. Why did they hve to come and visit. Were they going to enter the building and rescue the hostages or were they going to look after the injured. They would just add responsible and trouble to the Mumbai police and NSG people for their own security.
I write this with tearful eyes as I watch the nation salutes its martyrs. The operation in Mumbai has come to an end after sixty hours. I have spent all these hours, like billion others in this planet, following what the enemy would call their most spectacular attack on Indian soil.
I am seething with anger and I am not alone. I have little connection with Mumbai , but does that not mean that I am any less angry.
I believe that we are a great nation with very competent people, but the defining hours from last two days have changed my views. How can so many competent people allow themselves to be ruled by a state which is so callous?
I have lived through this hell since my adulthood, first as a young sikh man who was a soft target for both the police and the militants during days of terrorism in Punjab.
I remember getting out of my house everyday and wondering if I would ever return back to its safety. The militants would drive and spray bullets on all and sundry on streets. Every loud noise would seem like an end. As a young Sikh, one would not know who would get you first, the police or the militants.
Twenty five years later, the grit and intellect of the people of India has transformed India economically. But, the same people have allowed its leaders to continue playing havoc with their lives.
The people of India have chosen to be swayed by leaders, who haven’t been able to provide the very basic that the civil society needs. Security, water, roads, energy and health and education.
I have always been proud of Indian Defence forces. But our political leadership with its skewed thinking and narrow vote-based agenda., has reduced even that to tatters. A nation can allow terrorists to strike once, maybe twice but to allow them to strike almost every month in some part of the country causing devastation and loss of human life is only a demonstration of a very weak and clueless nationhood. The fact that we can’t watch our borders and coasts using our enormous human resources (a billion and counting) and scientific talent befuddles me. It’s plain simple callousness. Nothing else explains why and how can we allow unauthorised men, arms and ammunition to be smuggled inside our country. Try doing that anywhere in the west or in china or even in Singapore?
The answers lie in bringing paradigm shift in how we govern. We need to create a brand new police force, greenfield law & judicial systems, national identity system and a much different bureaucracy. The Prime Minister needs to show the same passion and fervour as he did while taking this country on nuclear energy path. He would know that Energy security comes much later than physical security.
In next six months of his term he should do things to permanently change the dynamics of this country which will not win him the next election (and which in any-case he is bound to lose), but the nation will always remain eternally indebted and grateful.
Am I hopeful ? Yes , Do I have a choice?
For me the thing that stood out was watching the official press conferences.
The CM’s spokeperson came out to speak to the press on the 2nd day or so.
He had no prepared notes.
He did not give turns to people in the press to ask questions. Every person would ask questions at the same time, and he would somehow answer one question.
Having lived in the US, I notice that whether it is the POTA, or a sheriff, when they talk to the press, they come out with a prepared statement, and then start taking questions. When they take questions, they point to a specific person in the press core, many of whom they know by name, and then people take turns to ask questions.
When people of a country cannot do a simple task of conducting a press conference in a systematic, organized and proffesional way, when everything they do is glazed with a “chalta hai” attitude, they cannot excel in anything they do, let alone fight terrorism.