REFLECTIONS

When the operation ended at the Taj, there were loud cheers for the brave commandoes who risked their lives to ensure the terrorists holed up the in two hotels & Nariman house did not cause more deaths.

However, the commandoes suffered casualties in accomplishing their task. Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan was killed while trying to flush out terrorists from the Taj & Havaldar Gajendra Singh was killed at the Nariman house. Apart from them, there were a number of casualties to Mumbai Police, including at the very top.

While no one doubts their bravery, some thought needs to be put into whether they really should have been killed in the circumstances.

With lesser and lesser encounters with the Underworld and more trouble being caused in the city due to terrorists who are well equipped with latest arms it is pretty obvious that the Police is ill equipped in terms of training and equipment to face the threat of terrorists.

How does one expect a constable weilding a lathi or an inspector with a service revolver to face a terrorist armed with grenades and automatic weapons? I think such a face-off should not be classified as anything but attempted suicide.

Even the NSG commandoes, the elite of the elite that the country has, had to take local transportation buses to reach the action zone. They were wearing helmets that looked more like 1960s scooter helmets, lacking even a visor. The bullet proof vests that they wore seemed to have plenty of room to allow bullets through. They were seen using walkie-talkies to communicate.

The biggest problem when the commandoes entered the hotel? It was too dark to see!! How come even the most elite soldiers of the country do not have night-vision goggles? I am sure they operation would have been over within hours had they been able to locate the terrorists with greater ease.

With the level of technology used in other countries, I think it is high time that it is adopted by us. Why can’t we have radios embedded in the collars of the jackets of our commandoes? Its not that it just looks cool on TV, it eases communication also.

When Mumbai has been such an oft-repeated target of terrorists, why cannot commandoes stationed closer to the city for faster action? Why cannot the Mumbai Police or the ATS have a squad of crack commandoes of their own? Why are we Martyring our brave men so that the needs of palatial houses and luxurious cars of politicians are met? Why is it that anger always has to boil over before any action is taken? Why cannot our politicians lead from the front for once?

These are some serious questions that the government really needs to answer.