Mumbai anniversary

It's a normal day at Mumbai's central railway station Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST). Over 3 million commuters travel through every day, with over 1,200 local as well as intercity trains chugging in and out of its platforms. Passengers crowd the entrance hall, sitting on benches or on the floor, waiting for their train to arrive.

On the surface it would seem as if it were business as usual. Yet a lot has changed at CST. Metal detectors are placed at every entrance and exit; baggage checks are now more frequent. Commandoes of the Railway Police Force (RPF) are on constant patrol, carrying AK-47 assault rifles. At four locations, bunker-like structures have been erected, where one or two commandoes are stationed at all times.

Exactly a year ago, the CST station was a target of one of the biggest terror attacks India has seen. For three days, a group of 10 gunmen held the entire city hostage, launching coordinated attacks at various locations in the city, including two luxury hotels, an Orthodox Jewish center, a hospital, a restaurant and the CST station.

At around 21:50 p.m. on November 26 last year, police inspector Sandeep Khiratkar from the RPF was already home from work. On receiving a phone call about gunfire at the CST, he rushed back. At first, he guessed it was a gang war.

Police caught unawares

"Such gang wars are common in Mumbai," he told Deutsche Welle. "But when I walked from the local train platforms toward the intercity trains, I saw two men walking towards us. Both of them were carrying AK-47 rifles, throwing hand grenades and shooting randomly at the passengers. That's when I realized this was no gang war. It was a terrorist attack."

Mumbai is no stranger to terror attacks. On July 11, 2006, a series of seven bomb blasts ripped through local trains at the peak evening rush hour. But a direct assault by two young men sauntering casually through the station was unprecedented.

Like Khiratkar and his subordinates, many other policemen rushed forward to confront the terrorists. Some of them had weapons, some did not. Yet even the police pistols, rifles and revolvers were no match for the terrorists who held far more sophisticated weapons and were well-trained in their use. After the bloodbath at the CST, they went ahead to carry out attacks at other locations.

Over 50 people were killed at the CST alone. Among them was head ticket inspector Sushil Kumar Sharma. Sharma was supposed to leave earlier that day to celebrate his son's birthday. On hearing gunfire, he ran to warn others at the controller's office, and was shot on the way there.

For his wife Ragini Sharma, life changed forever. The former housewife has now been given a job by the Railway authorities at the CST station, the same place where her husband was killed. She often wonders if it could have been different had the police force been better prepared that day.

"There were only two terrorists. Of course, they would have still succeeded in killing people. But if the police had been better equipped to deal with any kind of situation, they could have come up with some way to surround the gunmen and overpower them. That way, so many innocent lives wouldn't have ended, like my husband's," Ragini Sharma told Deutsche Welle.

"Wake-up call"

Many in Mumbai share the same sentiments. A year after the attacks, the government and security forces find themselves confronted with a hard question: could the attacks have been thwarted? A committee formed by the Maharashtra state government to probe the state response to the attacks gave a bleak assessment. In its report, the Ram Pradhan Committee spoke of an intelligence failure and a lack of satisfactory leadership and coordination among the various security forces.

"The events on 26/11 were a wake-up call for all of us. Now we have learned that we have to be prepared for any situation in the future," said Khiratkar.

Across the city, security measures are being heightened. Religious institutions, luxury hotels, and even some residential complexes are on high alert. Elite forces specially trained to combat terrorism have been formed at the state level.

Even at the CST, police are being better equipped to handle such an attack. "Every police officer at the CST now carries a weapon, and we are now training them in the use of assault rifles and other combat weapons. This training is being given to new recruits as well as senior officers in need of refresher courses," Khiratkar said.

Insecurity still prevails

Yet Mumbai's teeming millions are still far removed from a feeling of security.

"Yes, the security has been beefed up since the attacks, more so when there is a visit by some high profile official. But then the minute the official leaves, things seem to go back to normal again. I don't know if these security measures will really protect us against an attack in the future," said Ragini Sharma.

The people have resigned themselves to the fact that theirs is a city constantly under threat, Sarfaraz Arzu, journalist and editor of local Urdu daily Hindustan, told Deutsche Welle. "Mumbai is a city known to get back to its feet after such an incident. But this time the scale and the nature of the attacks were such that even today, there is a lingering fear in people's minds."

In this bustling metropolis, the struggle for existence goes on. But it will be a long time before the government can win back the trust of the people.

Author: Pia Chandavarkar
Editor: Rob Mudge