Reducing Army’s Footprint
It’s draconian, it’s deadly and it’s detested. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) imposed in the regions of Jammu & Kashmir and the North-East is highly unpopular with the civil society, Human rights group and the people of these states. It vests with the security forces unrestricted and unaccounted power. There are allegations that the Act has been grossly misused in the areas of its operation. Disturbed Areas Act as well as the Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Powers Act, both of which have been applied to the state since 1990, when militants from Pakistan crossed the Line of Control and instigated an insurgency that was to claim thousands of lives over the next couple of decades. Civilians have come to dread both pieces of legislation because they empower security forces to arrest without warrant, enter and search premises in order to make such arrests, fire or use force against those assembling in numbers larger than five, while officials cannot be sued or prosecuted because they are provided with legal immunity. A Report by the government appointed team of three interlocutors and data provided by the Union government published on Thursday supports the call given by the J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to remove it partially from districts of Srinagar, Badgam, Samba and Jammu.
The analysis of central government recently published data shows that insurgency hit state is safer than many of its peaceful counterparts like Haryana. In population-adjusted terms, violent deaths in J&K — those of terrorists and security force personnel, as well as murders of civilians, whether terrorism-related or otherwise — were at the same level as in Bihar, and not significantly higher than in Delhi. Violence due to militancy & terrorist activity has seen a steady decline since 2001-2002. In 2004, 707 civilians, 976 terrorists and 281 police and military personnel were killed. In 2009, the numbers plummeted to 64 security personnel, 78 civilians and 239 terrorists.
Even though Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has backed the idea, New Delhi has proved unwilling to act, due to bitter resistance by the Indian Army, BJP & Congress itself. The Union government is in a fix since defence and the home ministries are pulling in different directions. The State government contends that the decline in violence, as well as enhancements in police strength, means a number of these troops could be withdrawn and, as they leave, the Act lifted. The Army acknowledges the decline in violence, but argues that there is a continued threat from across the Line of Control, which necessitates the Act remaining in place. Many argue that the AFSPA-free enclaves will be safe havens for terrorists and militants. This makes little sense, since the Army is not present in these enclaves anyway and has no security responsibilities. These areas are largely managed by the local police assisted by CRPF. Chief Minister Abdullah's proposal leads to some risks. Yet not taking those risks involves heavy costs — key among them, creating a reservoir of frustration and anger that will undermine the hard-won peace that so many Indian soldiers gave their lives for. Looking at the stability which the north-eastern states have already achieved with the help of local police, the time has come when a well trained & equipped J&K police should be given the responsibility to manage peace and security of their own region. It`s time to think beyond AFSPA now and give its withdrawal a chance.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Reducing army's footprint
Reducing Army’s Footprint
It’s draconian, it’s deadly and it’s detested. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) imposed in the regions of Jammu & Kashmir and the North-East is highly unpopular with the civil society, Human rights group and the people of these states. It vests with the security forces unrestricted and unaccounted power. There are allegations that the Act has been grossly misused in the areas of its operation. Disturbed Areas Act as well as the Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Powers Act, both of which have been applied to the state since 1990, when militants from Pakistan crossed the Line of Control and instigated an insurgency that was to claim thousands of lives over the next couple of decades. Civilians have come to dread both pieces of legislation because they empower security forces to arrest without warrant, enter and search premises in order to make such arrests, fire or use force against those assembling in numbers larger than five, while officials cannot be sued or prosecuted because they are provided with legal immunity. A Report by the government appointed team of three interlocutors and data provided by the Union government published on Thursday supports the call given by the J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to remove it partially from districts of Srinagar, Badgam, Samba and Jammu.
The analysis of central government recently published data shows that insurgency hit state is safer than many of its peaceful counterparts like Haryana. In population-adjusted terms, violent deaths in J&K — those of terrorists and security force personnel, as well as murders of civilians, whether terrorism-related or otherwise — were at the same level as in Bihar, and not significantly higher than in Delhi. Violence due to militancy & terrorist activity has seen a steady decline since 2001-2002. In 2004, 707 civilians, 976 terrorists and 281 police and military personnel were killed. In 2009, the numbers plummeted to 64 security personnel, 78 civilians and 239 terrorists.
Even though Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has backed the idea, New Delhi has proved unwilling to act, due to bitter resistance by the Indian Army, BJP & Congress itself. The Union government is in a fix since defence and the home ministries are pulling in different directions. The State government contends that the decline in violence, as well as enhancements in police strength, means a number of these troops could be withdrawn and, as they leave, the Act lifted. The Army acknowledges the decline in violence, but argues that there is a continued threat from across the Line of Control, which necessitates the Act remaining in place. Many argue that the AFSPA-free enclaves will be safe havens for terrorists and militants. This makes little sense, since the Army is not present in these enclaves anyway and has no security responsibilities. These areas are largely managed by the local police assisted by CRPF. Chief Minister Abdullah's proposal leads to some risks. Yet not taking those risks involves heavy costs — key among them, creating a reservoir of frustration and anger that will undermine the hard-won peace that so many Indian soldiers gave their lives for. Looking at the stability which the north-eastern states have already achieved with the help of local police, the time has come when a well trained & equipped J&K police should be given the responsibility to manage peace and security of their own region. It`s time to think beyond AFSPA now and give its withdrawal a chance.
It’s draconian, it’s deadly and it’s detested. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) imposed in the regions of Jammu & Kashmir and the North-East is highly unpopular with the civil society, Human rights group and the people of these states. It vests with the security forces unrestricted and unaccounted power. There are allegations that the Act has been grossly misused in the areas of its operation. Disturbed Areas Act as well as the Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Powers Act, both of which have been applied to the state since 1990, when militants from Pakistan crossed the Line of Control and instigated an insurgency that was to claim thousands of lives over the next couple of decades. Civilians have come to dread both pieces of legislation because they empower security forces to arrest without warrant, enter and search premises in order to make such arrests, fire or use force against those assembling in numbers larger than five, while officials cannot be sued or prosecuted because they are provided with legal immunity. A Report by the government appointed team of three interlocutors and data provided by the Union government published on Thursday supports the call given by the J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to remove it partially from districts of Srinagar, Badgam, Samba and Jammu.
The analysis of central government recently published data shows that insurgency hit state is safer than many of its peaceful counterparts like Haryana. In population-adjusted terms, violent deaths in J&K — those of terrorists and security force personnel, as well as murders of civilians, whether terrorism-related or otherwise — were at the same level as in Bihar, and not significantly higher than in Delhi. Violence due to militancy & terrorist activity has seen a steady decline since 2001-2002. In 2004, 707 civilians, 976 terrorists and 281 police and military personnel were killed. In 2009, the numbers plummeted to 64 security personnel, 78 civilians and 239 terrorists.
Even though Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has backed the idea, New Delhi has proved unwilling to act, due to bitter resistance by the Indian Army, BJP & Congress itself. The Union government is in a fix since defence and the home ministries are pulling in different directions. The State government contends that the decline in violence, as well as enhancements in police strength, means a number of these troops could be withdrawn and, as they leave, the Act lifted. The Army acknowledges the decline in violence, but argues that there is a continued threat from across the Line of Control, which necessitates the Act remaining in place. Many argue that the AFSPA-free enclaves will be safe havens for terrorists and militants. This makes little sense, since the Army is not present in these enclaves anyway and has no security responsibilities. These areas are largely managed by the local police assisted by CRPF. Chief Minister Abdullah's proposal leads to some risks. Yet not taking those risks involves heavy costs — key among them, creating a reservoir of frustration and anger that will undermine the hard-won peace that so many Indian soldiers gave their lives for. Looking at the stability which the north-eastern states have already achieved with the help of local police, the time has come when a well trained & equipped J&K police should be given the responsibility to manage peace and security of their own region. It`s time to think beyond AFSPA now and give its withdrawal a chance.
Friday, September 2, 2011
THE RISE OF THE MIDDLE CLASS
Anna Hazare’s Movement has gathered an unprecedented support from the oft lazy Middle class Indians. Their unrelented support throughout his fast has stirred many sociologists. Whether one agrees or not with the substance of Hazare’s Lokpal bill, we are undoubtedly witnessing a remarkable social movement. What is surprising that Why has India’s urban middle class become the social base of Hazare’s movement? And why has this class chosen the route of movement led by civil society, as opposed to electoral politics led by political parties?
India now has one third urban population, according to the 2011 census. This growing is financially powerful and carries disdain for the politicians. Politics, for it, is not about democracy and constitutionalism. It is about delivering governance – even if it means electing CEOs to run cities rather than mayors and politicos. Corruption and bribery are obstacles to its progress. This is why it is backing the Jan Lokpal Bill. It may not know anything about the Bill’s specifics, or the Draconian nature of the Hazare version of it. But it will back the Bill just because it promises to put the fear of Lokpal into netas and babus. This new middle class is reared in private sector post 1991. It encounters the state only when it buys property, applies for a driving license, birth or death certificate, pays income tax, wants a passport, drives a vehicle or has an accident. These arenas of public life are highly corrupt.
Anger, frustration and helplessness has for the first time driven the middle class to come to streets and protest against corruption and assert its citizenship right to get a cleaner Government. The ironic part is that it is fighting for a bill which will reduce corruption at higher level but won’t bring in much change at their level. Routine corruption is more likely to go down if the middle class re-engaging itself in politics. Indian democracy is rural centric. Village panchayats receive more attention than municipal governance. Decisions about the city are made not by elected municipalities, but by state and central governments, who are more concerned with the rural vote. The situation has now changed. India is more urban and more affluent than before. The urban middle class should use the new political movement to return to electoral politics and start fighting for electoral reforms and push criminals of out Parliaments. They must take up issues which directly affects them. Like Police, economic, political & educational reforms. I would not debate about the merits & demerits of the Janlokpal Bill, but one thing is certain; reliance on civil society alone will not fix India’s governance problems, urban or rural. An anti-corruption Lokpal can only be part of a larger political process; It will not be a magic wand. . If the middle class wants cleaner and better governance, it needs to step into the arena of politics and change the system by engaging themselves into it.
This movement has achieved one advantage. It has shaken the politicians out of their slumber. It has sent a huge message across the Parliament that the time has come when the elected representative start behaving responsibly, else matters will now be decided in Ramlila maidan.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
AUGUST SURPRISE
AUGUST SURPRISE
August is supposed to be a month full of celebrations, but instead it has been full of surprise. The first on was the working of our Parliament. Instead of the mindless disruptions in the Parliament, we actually saw the opposition cornering the ruling government on CWG mess through some robust debates and facts. We were beginning to settle with adjournment and Logjams as synonyms for the parliament all thanks to our opposition parties. But good sense prevailed this time on BJP and finally the Loksabha looked like what it used to be. For the BJP, the debate was also a much-needed act of atonement. While the BJP's all-out offensive against the Prime Minister's Office for corruption over the 2010 Commonwealth Games might be part of a larger political strategy, there are certain charges that the government must answer. One of them is the appointment of Suresh Kalmadi despite three consecutive sports ministers writing to the PMO and warning against him and his style of working. Kalmadi may rightly be in the dock for wrongdoing, but he couldn't have had a free rein without the support, of his political bosses. Similarly, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit’s role cannot be ignored after the allegations made by the CAG audit and Shunglu committee reports. Her Government is accused of favoring particular companies in getting imported lights for the streets of Delhi among other things. Multiple civic bodies and sub-committees set up to decorate the capital city for the international event only facilitated the lack of accountability and over expenditure thus resulting in a huge mess and loot of the public coffers.
Our Next surprises were on the international front. The London riots and their powerless Police. Also the sorry state of the world’s richest economy resulting in a turbulent market across the world including our own. “The return of the recession” seems to be the scary movie which we would all be watching for the next year or so thanks to the Udhaar State of America. Both these things will affect us directly. Whereas the markets are still not steady after the last week’s spin, the UK riots worry us, given the intensive India-UK trade ties and a large Indian diaspora. Britishers rake their heads to find reasons for mindless looting and rioting, among rising concerns on erosion of authority in the English society. A chorus of establishment voices responded to pictures of school-age children looting late at night by reaching to blame the parents. MPs and David Cameron were talking about a broken Britain and its culture, and London's mayor said adults and teachers needed to be given back the right to impose authority. With nation wide calls from the Prime minister himself and debates on poor parenting and bad schooling, we Indians and Chinese including Amy Chua are happy to see our methods of strict parenting and disciplined schools being endorsed by the our ex rulers. Let us hope that Amy Chua's 'Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother' would be the one book that would be flying off the shelf of the Bookstores in UK.
August is supposed to be a month full of celebrations, but instead it has been full of surprise. The first on was the working of our Parliament. Instead of the mindless disruptions in the Parliament, we actually saw the opposition cornering the ruling government on CWG mess through some robust debates and facts. We were beginning to settle with adjournment and Logjams as synonyms for the parliament all thanks to our opposition parties. But good sense prevailed this time on BJP and finally the Loksabha looked like what it used to be. For the BJP, the debate was also a much-needed act of atonement. While the BJP's all-out offensive against the Prime Minister's Office for corruption over the 2010 Commonwealth Games might be part of a larger political strategy, there are certain charges that the government must answer. One of them is the appointment of Suresh Kalmadi despite three consecutive sports ministers writing to the PMO and warning against him and his style of working. Kalmadi may rightly be in the dock for wrongdoing, but he couldn't have had a free rein without the support, of his political bosses. Similarly, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit’s role cannot be ignored after the allegations made by the CAG audit and Shunglu committee reports. Her Government is accused of favoring particular companies in getting imported lights for the streets of Delhi among other things. Multiple civic bodies and sub-committees set up to decorate the capital city for the international event only facilitated the lack of accountability and over expenditure thus resulting in a huge mess and loot of the public coffers.
Our Next surprises were on the international front. The London riots and their powerless Police. Also the sorry state of the world’s richest economy resulting in a turbulent market across the world including our own. “The return of the recession” seems to be the scary movie which we would all be watching for the next year or so thanks to the Udhaar State of America. Both these things will affect us directly. Whereas the markets are still not steady after the last week’s spin, the UK riots worry us, given the intensive India-UK trade ties and a large Indian diaspora. Britishers rake their heads to find reasons for mindless looting and rioting, among rising concerns on erosion of authority in the English society. A chorus of establishment voices responded to pictures of school-age children looting late at night by reaching to blame the parents. MPs and David Cameron were talking about a broken Britain and its culture, and London's mayor said adults and teachers needed to be given back the right to impose authority. With nation wide calls from the Prime minister himself and debates on poor parenting and bad schooling, we Indians and Chinese including Amy Chua are happy to see our methods of strict parenting and disciplined schools being endorsed by the our ex rulers. Let us hope that Amy Chua's 'Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother' would be the one book that would be flying off the shelf of the Bookstores in UK.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Yeddy Dumped
When B S Yeddyurappa became the chief minister, his big promise was, “My mantra will be development… development... development”. Cut to the present: His name has become synonymous with development, not that of the state but of his family. Yeddyurappa had been walking on minefields ever since the powerful Bellary Brothers revolted against him. Apart from mining he is accused of illegal land allotment and land denotification scams. A couple of unusual transactions, a bank name and a 11-digit account number mentioned in the books of a mining company led Lokayukta sleuths to the trail of the kickbacks which B S Yeddyurappa and his family members received from mining companies. These details, at first glance seemed mild, but has finaly led to the fall of the master survivor. His bold attempts at taking the kickbacks in the name of Prerana Education Trust in cheques from Jindal Steel Limited (JSW), reflects his self confidence and the powerful and unquestionable position in the state, of which even the BJP was scared off. Despite his fears about various land scam, he never imagined that illegal mining could take him down specially after reigning in the Reddy Brothers whose area of operation, Bellary, figured prominently in the report. Turning a blind eye to these allegations would have been political suicide for the BJP. It could have completely destroyed its anti- corruption campaign at the national level. The party should learn its lesson from the fate of DMK in Tamilnadu, and should not allow its regional satrap to dictate terms on the basis of lingayat vote banks. Karnataka’s electorate are equally smart and would quickly respond to outrageous corruption by ending its dream run in south. The BJP leadership should ensure that his successor is not only above reproach but also has the requisite political acumen and administrative capability to head the government
The Lokayukta report brings into perspective two other issues. First one is the need for mining to be reformed thoroughly. Mining now needs regulatory authorities and cannot be left at the supervision of civil servants, who have been found equally guilty of corruption. Another thing that has come clearly out of this report is that a strong Lokayukta can deliver his duties and we do not require a new kind of ombudsman with overarching powers for real effect. Since the topic of a strong Lokpal is being hotly debated at present, Justice Hegde serves as a shining example to all (coincidentally he is also a member of the civil society’s drafting committee). His example is strong enough to deliver the message that an upright and strong Lokpal with vigilant media, informed and mobilized citizens, and a fast paced criminal justice system will be more effective against corruption than anything else. Both civil society and the government can learn a few lessons from this.
The Lokayukta report brings into perspective two other issues. First one is the need for mining to be reformed thoroughly. Mining now needs regulatory authorities and cannot be left at the supervision of civil servants, who have been found equally guilty of corruption. Another thing that has come clearly out of this report is that a strong Lokayukta can deliver his duties and we do not require a new kind of ombudsman with overarching powers for real effect. Since the topic of a strong Lokpal is being hotly debated at present, Justice Hegde serves as a shining example to all (coincidentally he is also a member of the civil society’s drafting committee). His example is strong enough to deliver the message that an upright and strong Lokpal with vigilant media, informed and mobilized citizens, and a fast paced criminal justice system will be more effective against corruption than anything else. Both civil society and the government can learn a few lessons from this.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Tryst with terrorists
Mumbai’s tryst with terrorist
Mumbai is truck again. It’s a sense of déjà vu for all. We saw the same horror scenes repeatedly on TV, the same rhetoric by the Govt. the same debate on talk shows. Nothing has changed after 26/11. Our booming economy and our status as a rising power has made Mumbai & Delhi as the most vulnerable cities to terrorist attacks. Look at the past four months and we were given enough warnings about a bigger attack in future. The number of failed bomb attacks – in Delhi high court, Delhi's Gargi College, Sealdah-New Delhi Rajdhani Express and elsewhere. They were dismissed as pranks. Perhaps these were the result of the Karachi Project which David Hadley revealed in his interrogation to FBI. Mumbai blasts could be an indication that the Karachi Project is blooming in India. Home grown Jehad group have been active and our Intelligence have failed to trap them. Not one of the five urban terrorist attacks that preceded the latest Mumbai bombings has been solved. Perhaps the lull after 2008 has set in complacency in the intelligence agencies. This was evident in the goof-ups in the 'Most Wanted' list that was posted to Pakistan. It's clear that coordination among security agencies in India is still lacking. And why not as many of the internal security reforms proposed after the 26/11 attacks have bitten the dust. Despite decades of terror attack we haven’t been able to pluck the shortage in the Police personnel in our country. As per the home ministry, about 5,40,000 policemen were immediately required to make up the shortages in our police forces. But less than a third of that number has been recruited till date. Our projections for policing are well below the UN recommended ratio of 222 policemen per 1,00,000 citizens. Worse still, for a country repeatedly targeted by terrorists, India's internal security budget is less than 1% of its GDP, whereas India's defence budget is about 2.5% of its GDP. If the responsibility of the government is to protect its citizens, then it simply needs to spend more on equipping, training and arming our policemen to achieve greater efficiency. We urgently need to spend a huge amount on CCTV Camera installed on strategic positions. These footage are crucial in catching terrorists. The London bombers, the Time square bombers and Kasab were all caught on camera. We need to model our Police and surveillance on UK, which has about 1.85 million CCTV cameras and the average Briton is caught on camera 70 times a day as per the police figures. Living in a surveillance society is the need of the hour. We also need to adopt the idea of community policing from UK which has protected London which perhaps has the largest movement of terrorists through it but remains secure.
We need to accept that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and its cut in aids to Pakistan will make our neighborhood a secure field for the terrorist to play as they want. Mr. Chidambaram has rightly pointed out that India is located in one of the most dangerous regions in the world. Our neighborhood is the global terrorism's epicenter. It is their aim to target India's economic rise and its cities, which remain crowded, disorganized and vulnerable. We need some elementary steps that could make citizens secure. Upgrading our police force, investing in technology for internal security and the long awaited national intelligence grid initiative could help fill this void, but it is still some years from being completed. Until then, we are left at the mercy of the terrorist.
Mumbai is truck again. It’s a sense of déjà vu for all. We saw the same horror scenes repeatedly on TV, the same rhetoric by the Govt. the same debate on talk shows. Nothing has changed after 26/11. Our booming economy and our status as a rising power has made Mumbai & Delhi as the most vulnerable cities to terrorist attacks. Look at the past four months and we were given enough warnings about a bigger attack in future. The number of failed bomb attacks – in Delhi high court, Delhi's Gargi College, Sealdah-New Delhi Rajdhani Express and elsewhere. They were dismissed as pranks. Perhaps these were the result of the Karachi Project which David Hadley revealed in his interrogation to FBI. Mumbai blasts could be an indication that the Karachi Project is blooming in India. Home grown Jehad group have been active and our Intelligence have failed to trap them. Not one of the five urban terrorist attacks that preceded the latest Mumbai bombings has been solved. Perhaps the lull after 2008 has set in complacency in the intelligence agencies. This was evident in the goof-ups in the 'Most Wanted' list that was posted to Pakistan. It's clear that coordination among security agencies in India is still lacking. And why not as many of the internal security reforms proposed after the 26/11 attacks have bitten the dust. Despite decades of terror attack we haven’t been able to pluck the shortage in the Police personnel in our country. As per the home ministry, about 5,40,000 policemen were immediately required to make up the shortages in our police forces. But less than a third of that number has been recruited till date. Our projections for policing are well below the UN recommended ratio of 222 policemen per 1,00,000 citizens. Worse still, for a country repeatedly targeted by terrorists, India's internal security budget is less than 1% of its GDP, whereas India's defence budget is about 2.5% of its GDP. If the responsibility of the government is to protect its citizens, then it simply needs to spend more on equipping, training and arming our policemen to achieve greater efficiency. We urgently need to spend a huge amount on CCTV Camera installed on strategic positions. These footage are crucial in catching terrorists. The London bombers, the Time square bombers and Kasab were all caught on camera. We need to model our Police and surveillance on UK, which has about 1.85 million CCTV cameras and the average Briton is caught on camera 70 times a day as per the police figures. Living in a surveillance society is the need of the hour. We also need to adopt the idea of community policing from UK which has protected London which perhaps has the largest movement of terrorists through it but remains secure.
We need to accept that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and its cut in aids to Pakistan will make our neighborhood a secure field for the terrorist to play as they want. Mr. Chidambaram has rightly pointed out that India is located in one of the most dangerous regions in the world. Our neighborhood is the global terrorism's epicenter. It is their aim to target India's economic rise and its cities, which remain crowded, disorganized and vulnerable. We need some elementary steps that could make citizens secure. Upgrading our police force, investing in technology for internal security and the long awaited national intelligence grid initiative could help fill this void, but it is still some years from being completed. Until then, we are left at the mercy of the terrorist.
Tryst with terrorists
Mumbai’s tryst with terrorist
Mumbai is truck again. It’s a sense of déjà vu for all. We saw the same horror scenes repeatedly on TV, the same rhetoric by the Govt. the same debate on talk shows. Nothing has changed after 26/11. Our booming economy and our status as a rising power has made Mumbai & Delhi as the most vulnerable cities to terrorist attacks. Look at the past four months and we were given enough warnings about a bigger attack in future. The number of failed bomb attacks – in Delhi high court, Delhi's Gargi College, Sealdah-New Delhi Rajdhani Express and elsewhere. They were dismissed as pranks. Perhaps these were the result of the Karachi Project which David Hadley revealed in his interrogation to FBI. Mumbai blasts could be an indication that the Karachi Project is blooming in India. Home grown Jehad group have been active and our Intelligence have failed to trap them. Not one of the five urban terrorist attacks that preceded the latest Mumbai bombings has been solved. Perhaps the lull after 2008 has set in complacency in the intelligence agencies. This was evident in the goof-ups in the 'Most Wanted' list that was posted to Pakistan. It's clear that coordination among security agencies in India is still lacking. And why not as many of the internal security reforms proposed after the 26/11 attacks have bitten the dust. Despite decades of terror attack we haven’t been able to pluck the shortage in the Police personnel in our country. As per the home ministry, about 5,40,000 policemen were immediately required to make up the shortages in our police forces. But less than a third of that number has been recruited till date. Our projections for policing are well below the UN recommended ratio of 222 policemen per 1,00,000 citizens. Worse still, for a country repeatedly targeted by terrorists, India's internal security budget is less than 1% of its GDP, whereas India's defence budget is about 2.5% of its GDP. If the responsibility of the government is to protect its citizens, then it simply needs to spend more on equipping, training and arming our policemen to achieve greater efficiency. We urgently need to spend a huge amount on CCTV Camera installed on strategic positions. These footage are crucial in catching terrorists. The London bombers, the Time square bombers and Kasab were all caught on camera. We need to model our Police and surveillance on UK, which has about 1.85 million CCTV cameras and the average Briton is caught on camera 70 times a day as per the police figures. Living in a surveillance society is the need of the hour. We also need to adopt the idea of community policing from UK which has protected London which perhaps has the largest movement of terrorists through it but remains secure.
We need to accept that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and its cut in aids to Pakistan will make our neighborhood a secure field for the terrorist to play as they want. Mr. Chidambaram has rightly pointed out that India is located in one of the most dangerous regions in the world. Our neighborhood is the global terrorism's epicenter. It is their aim to target India's economic rise and its cities, which remain crowded, disorganized and vulnerable. We need some elementary steps that could make citizens secure. Upgrading our police force, investing in technology for internal security and the long awaited national intelligence grid initiative could help fill this void, but it is still some years from being completed. Until then, we are left at the mercy of the terrorist.
Mumbai is truck again. It’s a sense of déjà vu for all. We saw the same horror scenes repeatedly on TV, the same rhetoric by the Govt. the same debate on talk shows. Nothing has changed after 26/11. Our booming economy and our status as a rising power has made Mumbai & Delhi as the most vulnerable cities to terrorist attacks. Look at the past four months and we were given enough warnings about a bigger attack in future. The number of failed bomb attacks – in Delhi high court, Delhi's Gargi College, Sealdah-New Delhi Rajdhani Express and elsewhere. They were dismissed as pranks. Perhaps these were the result of the Karachi Project which David Hadley revealed in his interrogation to FBI. Mumbai blasts could be an indication that the Karachi Project is blooming in India. Home grown Jehad group have been active and our Intelligence have failed to trap them. Not one of the five urban terrorist attacks that preceded the latest Mumbai bombings has been solved. Perhaps the lull after 2008 has set in complacency in the intelligence agencies. This was evident in the goof-ups in the 'Most Wanted' list that was posted to Pakistan. It's clear that coordination among security agencies in India is still lacking. And why not as many of the internal security reforms proposed after the 26/11 attacks have bitten the dust. Despite decades of terror attack we haven’t been able to pluck the shortage in the Police personnel in our country. As per the home ministry, about 5,40,000 policemen were immediately required to make up the shortages in our police forces. But less than a third of that number has been recruited till date. Our projections for policing are well below the UN recommended ratio of 222 policemen per 1,00,000 citizens. Worse still, for a country repeatedly targeted by terrorists, India's internal security budget is less than 1% of its GDP, whereas India's defence budget is about 2.5% of its GDP. If the responsibility of the government is to protect its citizens, then it simply needs to spend more on equipping, training and arming our policemen to achieve greater efficiency. We urgently need to spend a huge amount on CCTV Camera installed on strategic positions. These footage are crucial in catching terrorists. The London bombers, the Time square bombers and Kasab were all caught on camera. We need to model our Police and surveillance on UK, which has about 1.85 million CCTV cameras and the average Briton is caught on camera 70 times a day as per the police figures. Living in a surveillance society is the need of the hour. We also need to adopt the idea of community policing from UK which has protected London which perhaps has the largest movement of terrorists through it but remains secure.
We need to accept that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and its cut in aids to Pakistan will make our neighborhood a secure field for the terrorist to play as they want. Mr. Chidambaram has rightly pointed out that India is located in one of the most dangerous regions in the world. Our neighborhood is the global terrorism's epicenter. It is their aim to target India's economic rise and its cities, which remain crowded, disorganized and vulnerable. We need some elementary steps that could make citizens secure. Upgrading our police force, investing in technology for internal security and the long awaited national intelligence grid initiative could help fill this void, but it is still some years from being completed. Until then, we are left at the mercy of the terrorist.
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