Few lessons from the Mumbai blasts

The recent blasts at Mumbai saddened me to a great extent. We, as a country, have been facing too many terror threats and have continued to endure it with great restraint.

At one time, I was appalled and angry at the current state of affairs. As days went by, I thought, “Do we deserve this?” ...and I was surprised by my own answer to this question. It appears... yes.

If we fail to learn from our mistakes, we will continue to fall like the leaves of a diseased tree.

We don’t have to point fingers at the government for its failure. The questions to be asked would be, “What have we done? Have we not learnt any lessons?”

I still remember 9/11 and the changes it brought to the world. The security DNA of entire airline industry was restructured. The immigration laws were redefined.

But, what did we do after the attacks on India?... Nothing? Yes, nothing. Did we learn anything? I think we learnt... nothing!

Let us relook the blasts to see what we can gather from them.

Almost all of them were due to cars, bikes and cycles that were parked in a crowded area. The lesson to be learnt here is no rocket science.

Apparently, we are living in a virtual time bomb. In Bangalore alone, consider Commercial Street, Brigade Road, or Jayanagar shopping complex. Anybody can park a car on the street and... BOOM!!!

When I saw the tragic visuals of Zaveri bazaar blast, I realised that we are sitting ducks for these guys. Everything is set ready for them to execute their plan. I can bet my one year’s salary... this place can be hit again (God forbid!) if the people of that locality do not enforce some simple laws to protect their lives.

We could take simple steps to mitigate, if not fully prevent, a repeat... that is, if we are not bound by our renown “Mumbai spirit” to ignore this.

For starters, we could push for designated parking lots. No vehicle should be allowed to be parked on busy streets. Shop vendors could grumble about business loss. But is human life more expendable than money? Secondly, in all probability, anyone parking in these busy areas would be walking quite a distance to visit the shop of his choice. After all, how often does one get a parking slot right in front of the shop of choice?!

Next, we need to add our names to our money. If all shops start accepting plastic money, there would be an identification of sorts of each customer. This should not be too difficult to achieve! The setting up might be a bit of an inconvenience, but not a pain... at least not when it is our existence that is at stake.

Third, keep your area clean. Garbage is the most vulnerable place- simply because it is easily camouflaged. If our residential and commercial areas are clean, anything that is out of place would stand out. It’d be easy to say that the government needs to manage our security. But consider the scenario that’s fall out of their failure- you might not be alive a moment longer, to see your children, spouse or parents. Does it really matter who failed, when you are no longer around or are crippled for life? So keep a vigil- manage the garbage to stay out of a bigger mess.

Fourth, demand its worth for your vote and tax. If each Mumbaikar questions the politicians and lawmakers, wouldn’t these people in power be wary of questions about Kasab and Dawood? This would put pressure on the political parties. Add a premium to your vote. Publish your demands and hold your vote hostage until the demands are met. Remind them that it was YOUR choice to put them in the position of power, to be lawmakers, not law-breakers. Words like kingpin, power, reign, etc should be avoided. In a democracy, there are just town planners, lawmakers and policymakers (I hope the media is listening.)

Stop returning to work the day after a bombing like nothing happened. Then, the MNCs and lawmakers will be compelled to take the public seriously. Else, we will just have to live with the laughable “Mumbai or Bangalore spirit". There was no case against Osama. Is kasab special?

What are we trying to prove?- that we are more humane?... or spineless?

Lastly and most importantly, ROOT OUT CORRUPTION. Think about it- as I type this or as you read it, there’s probably a terrorist, who is bribing some guy in our country, to create a false identity for himself. And it is the black money that goes into the “business” of terrorism.

If we stop paying the money and report corruption, the scope is lessened. Not an easy task; but worth putting the effort. May be one generation will suffer. All that matters is that we need to show the willingness to change and take the first step.