The terrorised and increasingly traumatised citizens of the twin cities have been clamouring for a behemoth budget for the beleaguered police force, strengthening of the intelligence gathering mechanisms, and last but not the least, purchasing and timely installation of surveillance gadgets and mechanisms in the aftermath of the heinous twin bomb blasts that took the city by utter surprise and horror on the evening of February 21, 2013.........
One really wonders whether the adoption and implementation of the above mentioned measures will be enough to usher in a feeling of safety, security, succour and comfort in the hearts and minds of the citizens of the twin cities, or then does one need to do a whole lot more to curb this dastardly terror menace.......
Whatever happened to good old fashioned responsibility and accountability; one is yet to see any top ranking Andhra Pradesh police official accepting the responsibility for the failure to take due cognisance of actionable intelligence provided by both the Delhi Police as well as union home ministry officials on more than one occasion, why aren't the citizens crying themselves hoarse demanding the immediate removal of both the DGP as well as city police commissioner instead of raising a hue and cry for these gadgets that will only provide one with a false and misleading sense of security and comfort..........
The assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi will certainly go down as a blot on independent India's history as well as one of the blackest days ever; but the anti Sikh riots that unfolded in the aftermath of this fateful assassination were even more of a black mark against humanity as a whole........
I remember patrolling the streets of south Delhi's Kalkaji "G" block for ten nights between six pm and six am in order to ensure that the Sikh families who resided in our neighbourhood were safe, secure and free from worry, I can proudly say that we did not let a single anti Sikh marauder enter our immediate neighbourhood and cause harm to a single hair on a proud Sikh's head........
How is it that this feeling of oneness, togetherness and solidarity with our neighbours and fellow residents has all but evaporated over the last 28/29 years, most if not all of us do not even know the names of our immediate neighbours and what they look like, we only prefer to build bonds with people from the same state, sharing a common language or culture or then people of the same religious dispensation, why is brotherhood, bonhomie and the spirit of universal brotherhood becoming a calamity in these increasingly consumerist and self serving times.........
All of us without exception need to take a long and hard look at ourselves in our mirrors before pointing fingers at the police and political establishment, did we reach out and provide aid and succour to our suffering fellow brethren or then simply satiated our guilty consciences by lighting candles and silently protesting against these twin bomb blasts as has become both our wont and fashion.........
Isn't it our responsibility to loosen our purse strings and raise funds for the medical care and rehabilitation of our fellow Hyderabadis who have suffered calamitous injuries that might leave them handicapped for the rest of their natural lives, conveniently foisting the entire onus of the very same on the shoulders of the government and authorities is the coward's way out and most if not all of us have conveniently adopted the same as it suits our narrow and selfish ends.........
A concerted people/public-police partnership is the only way forward and I know that is easier said than done considering the mutual misgivings and misunderstandings on either side of the divide, but we need to set aside these recriminations and rancour and come together as a cohesive unit in a spirit of sharing and bonhomie if we want to effectively combat this growing menace of terrorism and bomb blasts........
37 out of 40 terrorist activities or attempts were nipped in the bud or thwarted before they could assume threatening proportions because of the alertness, alacrity and spirit of co-operation with the authorities displayed by the common American citizens, and this is why America has not fallen prey to a single terrorist attack since 9/11.........
We can bloody well do the same if the Americans can do it, all we need to do is to start thinking beyond ourselves, cultivate a universal and humanistic outlook and avoid the tendency to conveniently pass the buck instead of ensuring that the very same stops with us..............
One really wonders whether the adoption and implementation of the above mentioned measures will be enough to usher in a feeling of safety, security, succour and comfort in the hearts and minds of the citizens of the twin cities, or then does one need to do a whole lot more to curb this dastardly terror menace.......
Whatever happened to good old fashioned responsibility and accountability; one is yet to see any top ranking Andhra Pradesh police official accepting the responsibility for the failure to take due cognisance of actionable intelligence provided by both the Delhi Police as well as union home ministry officials on more than one occasion, why aren't the citizens crying themselves hoarse demanding the immediate removal of both the DGP as well as city police commissioner instead of raising a hue and cry for these gadgets that will only provide one with a false and misleading sense of security and comfort..........
The assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi will certainly go down as a blot on independent India's history as well as one of the blackest days ever; but the anti Sikh riots that unfolded in the aftermath of this fateful assassination were even more of a black mark against humanity as a whole........
I remember patrolling the streets of south Delhi's Kalkaji "G" block for ten nights between six pm and six am in order to ensure that the Sikh families who resided in our neighbourhood were safe, secure and free from worry, I can proudly say that we did not let a single anti Sikh marauder enter our immediate neighbourhood and cause harm to a single hair on a proud Sikh's head........
How is it that this feeling of oneness, togetherness and solidarity with our neighbours and fellow residents has all but evaporated over the last 28/29 years, most if not all of us do not even know the names of our immediate neighbours and what they look like, we only prefer to build bonds with people from the same state, sharing a common language or culture or then people of the same religious dispensation, why is brotherhood, bonhomie and the spirit of universal brotherhood becoming a calamity in these increasingly consumerist and self serving times.........
All of us without exception need to take a long and hard look at ourselves in our mirrors before pointing fingers at the police and political establishment, did we reach out and provide aid and succour to our suffering fellow brethren or then simply satiated our guilty consciences by lighting candles and silently protesting against these twin bomb blasts as has become both our wont and fashion.........
Isn't it our responsibility to loosen our purse strings and raise funds for the medical care and rehabilitation of our fellow Hyderabadis who have suffered calamitous injuries that might leave them handicapped for the rest of their natural lives, conveniently foisting the entire onus of the very same on the shoulders of the government and authorities is the coward's way out and most if not all of us have conveniently adopted the same as it suits our narrow and selfish ends.........
A concerted people/public-police partnership is the only way forward and I know that is easier said than done considering the mutual misgivings and misunderstandings on either side of the divide, but we need to set aside these recriminations and rancour and come together as a cohesive unit in a spirit of sharing and bonhomie if we want to effectively combat this growing menace of terrorism and bomb blasts........
37 out of 40 terrorist activities or attempts were nipped in the bud or thwarted before they could assume threatening proportions because of the alertness, alacrity and spirit of co-operation with the authorities displayed by the common American citizens, and this is why America has not fallen prey to a single terrorist attack since 9/11.........
We can bloody well do the same if the Americans can do it, all we need to do is to start thinking beyond ourselves, cultivate a universal and humanistic outlook and avoid the tendency to conveniently pass the buck instead of ensuring that the very same stops with us..............
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