The War which we are losing... Everyday.

Mumbai 1993 . Mumbai 2003. Mumbai 2006 . Mumbai 2008. And now, Mumbai 2011. Five times in the last 18 years. Yes , 5 times. Mumbai has had to bear the brunt of terrorist attacks more than any other major city in the world over the past two decades. And its not just Mumbai which has been scarred and bruised over the past two decades. Pretty much the whole of India has the same story to tell. Every major city , be it New Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore or Jaipur , has been targeted in the recent past.

And what do we always do? . We always end up blaming the forces from across the border. Some Jehadist organistaion is first cursed , then our government is abused , and then we pity on our secirity forces. End of story. Life back to normal. Have we ever had an honest introspection about the reasons for this terror? Have we ever wondered as to what has gone wrong with the security apparatus of this country over the last 20 years?. Sadly , the answer is an emphatic No.

The main reason behind this painful ordeal is our nonchalant attitude towards security. Just take a glance into our daily lives , and you will know what i'm talking about. For example , we have metal detectors installed at most railway stations and shopping malls. But how many of us bother to go through them? The answer is Very few! Our police force is generally equipped with arms and ammunition which , honestly speaking, is obsolete and useless. Our coastal secutiry is a shambles. Our investigative agencies lack the technical expertise to counter new age terrorism.

We expect hawaldars , who are generally 12th pass or just mere graduates , to prevent, counter and thwart highly trained terrorists, that too with obsolete arms and ammunition. And after a terror attack , we expect the same people to collect evidence forensically and crack the case.

If we expect a police force trained and armed from the 1970's era , with counter terror laws framed more than half a century ago , to fight modern age terrorism , we are just fooling ourselves.

There needs to be a debate in this country about the larger role of the people in the fight against terror. We need to discuss the real issues which are ailing us. Just hanging Kasab and Afzal Guru won't do. We'll have to hang our cavalier attitude and perfunctory approach as well.