MUMBAI - REVISITED
" Three blasts greet Chidu on first NE trip" exclaimed the newspapers on 2nd January. They were referring to three blasts in Gawahati which not only coincided with the first visit of the new Home Minister but were exploded on the eve of P.M.'s visit to Shillong. They not only heralded the advent of 2009 but also reminded that the nation cannot be caught with pants down like on 26th November when most of the bureaucrats /police officials who mattered were busy with parties allowing the terrorists to set up a new bench mark in terror.
The aftermath also saw the Chief of Naval Staff loose his cool with journalists whom he had called to dole out achievements of Navy on the eve of Navy Day i.e. 3rd December. In a supplement published on the occasion, Vice Admiral Vinod Pasricha (Retd.) wrote.
"Navies are sometimes referred to as either Blue water or Brown water. These references relate to the capability of a Navy to operate and fight either in open seas (Blue water) or in coastal zones (Brown water). For the Indian Navy this was a common debate in the early sixties, when our ships were limited in number and not all had the endurance to remain at sea for long durations. Since then, our mettle has been adequately proved in the '71 war, as also the phenomenal increase in our capacity to build indigenous ships. These references have now ceased and we are recognized and respected for the strength of our Navy."
What perhaps the Chief of Naval Staff had on his mind was that our Navy is responsible for the Indian ships and sailors on high seas and could not be expected to look for small LeT commanded ships carrying non-state actors in Brown Water !! What is worrisome is the fact that Mumbai is the oldest base of Indian Navy and unless the dockyards and shipyards are well protected, security of Bombay High oil platforms of ONGC and the sea lanes of communications cannot be ensured. It is true that the Coast Guards operates in coastal zones and carries out aerial surveillance with the help of its Airwing. Nonetheless, it is noteworthy that Coast Guards is commanded by a serving Naval Officer and, in times of emergencies operates under the overall command of the Chief of Naval Staff. In the light of foregoing, it is inappropriate to fasten the responsibility of failure to prevent entry of terrorists only on Mumbai Police.
Seasoned police officers of yesteryears have analyzed the situation. Shri M.N. Singh a former Police Commissioner of Mumbai has called it a systemic failure in so far as the intelligence managers failed to appreciate the inputs and consequently act upon them in a concerted manner resulting in heavy casualties. He has lamented the fact that Mumbai Police lost 14 men in two hours while NSG lost only two men in two days of gun battle. He is also critical of non-utilization of the "Quick Response Team" available within Mumbai Police. This unit was raised on the lines of NSG in 2002.
Mr.Julio Ribeiro, Police Commissioner of Mumbai 25 years ago and later, the "bullet for bullet" Director General of Punjab Police, felt that the police effort that was launched in the wake of the fidayeen attack was a trifle disjointed in the initial phase. He feels that more than weaponry, it is the motivation and leadership that finally matter. He is firmly of the view that old rifles are better for the Police as they allow a jawan to aim and shoot unlike AK 47 and AK 56 which are "area weapons" used for indiscriminate firing. In any case, a jammed AK 47 is as useless as a jammed 303 rifle.
Press reports also talk of co-ordination and control problems between the Director General of Police and the Mumbai Police Commissioner since both are DG rank officers. They also state that the DGP was first informed by a friend sitting at Masala Kraft Restaurant of Taj Palce Hotel about firing outside. One journalist has gone even to the extent of suggesting that the DGP felt helpless as the city police had separate budget, operational control as well as communications network. These stories lack credibility as separate budget and networks are only meant to improve efficiency. Similarly, equivalent rank cannot stand in the way of operations because DGP is undoubtedly senior. In Army, three types of Lieutenant Generals work together. In the case of Maharashtra, luckily, the DGP had earlier worked as Police Commissioner and so he knew the system full well.
To set at rest all controversies, the State Government has set up a two Member Committee consisting of S/Shri R.D.Pradhan and V.Balachandran retired IAS and IPS officials of Maharashtra cadre. It is to be hoped that the Committee would do a quick job so that its suggestions can be implemented by other State Governments also to the extent of their relevance to local conditions. Hindustan Times had rightly written on 28th November that we as a nation cannot afford to sleep.
- Dr. Sundeep Khanna
drsunkhanna@nic.in
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