In the dawn of 21st November, 2008, 10 terrorists from Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) terror group sneaked inside India via sea route by hijacking ‘the Kuber’, an Indian trawler. Very craftily they entered Mumbai in their inflatable speedboats to wreak havoc on the film city of India. Bombings in Taj Mahal Palace hotel, Oberoi Trident, Nariman House, hospital and train station shook the entire city to the core. Yes, we’re talking about the infamous 26/11 Mumbai Terror Attacks that changed the life of hundreds around us. 8 years have passed since one of the greatest tragedies was inflicted on India. Today, on the 8th Anniversary of 26/11 attack, the entire country came together to pay their tributes to the martyrs and victims.
Regardless of this show, some questions need to be answered. Did we make an attempt to lighten the brunt of terror on these victims? What did government do to prevent such tragedies in future? How can we prevent violent ideologies from cropping up in the society? Questions are many, but answers are few. After 8 long years, India remains vulnerable to terrorism and anti-nationalism, even today.
Meet the Victims of Mumbai Attacks, their Wounds are Still Fresh…
After she lost her husband Fosten Martis in the 26/11 Mumbai attack at Taj Mahal Palace hotel, Agnes Martis was left to look after her two young kids. This homemaker from Thane was forlorn and lost for a long time “I did not even know what the next station was after Thane. I was so dependent on my husband,” she said.
Each year, the memories of Mumbai Terror attacks haunts Dr. N.P. Vaswani, “I am still scared to sit in my clinic and the fear is still there. Whole day I am busy with my patients, if I had been idle, I would have died. So, my work has kept me alive.”
The life of a 13-years old survivor Devika drastically changed in the aftermath of Mumbai attacks. Devika, who was shot in her right leg, had to use crutches for several months. After she testified against Ajmal Kasab in court, the plight of this youngest eye-witness didn’t end. She shared her nightmares with one of the newspapers.
“There are both positive and negative changes in our lives. The positive change is I have got some award and people have appreciated me. But the downside is my father is jobless now and there is a financial crisis. His business folded up as people stopped dealing with him due to fear of terrorists. There is problem at our village too. People asked us not to visit there, fearing that terrorists might follow us to the village“, she said.
Countless Messages Poured in From within the Country On 26/11 Attack anniversary
Numerous NGOs, trusts and government bodies like Ratna Nidhi Trust, Tata Public Service Welfare Trust did their best to rehabilitate the victims. Maharashtra government announced a compensation amount of Rs. 500,000 for the dead and Rs. 50,000 for the injured.
How can India Prevent a Repeat of Such Episodes?
Despite all this, we’re compelled to think, what if this happens again? Is the government ready to bear the burden of another terror attack? Indian Government needs to take some solid steps in this direction. Although the government has made little progress by scrapping out Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes to exercise control on terror funding, we must follow progressive nations like Israel, US and Russia to prevent terrorism.
Moreover, we’ve to control all checkpoints of infiltration. CCTVs should be installed at important public locations, a separate attack-fighting team should be employed for this purpose and a system akin to 911 emergency medical aid needs to be launched in all Indian cities. Anti-terrorism policies have to be transferred from paper on ground. Only then can India prevent a repeat of 26/11 Mumbai Terror Attacks in future.
