It is going to be 24 hours since it all started a few kilometers from here.
Half an hour back I went to the sea face just to have a look at the city skyline... whether it looked any different. It didn't. The lights at the governor's house, malabar hill and marine drive looked the same at least from this distance. It looked like any other evening. But it isn't the same.
Last night around 10:30 pm, I was flipping through the pages of Bombay Times to see if there is a late night show of any decent movie aroung south bombay. I was wondering whether i should go to INOX (nariman point) or Metro Adlabs. The shows at both these places were just 15 mins apart and i was still deciding when a friend called up and asked me to switch on the tv. As i was talking to him, i could hear loud noises which seemed like thunder (or blasts) and finally when i set the tv at NDTV, i saw the visuals from Leopold cafe. Speechless...
At that time it wasn't clear as to what actually happened. Initial reports said that it seemed like a gangwar as there were "serial firings". Then slowly the news kept coming from CST, Taj, Oberoi, Trident, Nariman House and others... By midnight it was clear that it is a terror attack (once again!!!), but this time it was different. This time it wasn't bombs planted all over the city. This time they themselves came prepared for an active attack at several places in the city, killing the rich and the affluent at luxury hotels, the common commuters at CST and the police personnel.
If it can happen in the premises of the Parliament, it can happen anywhere in the country. But the question is "Are we equipped to deal with such situations?". It took more than 3 hours for the state police to realize the enormity of the situation and then NSG and army were called to Mumbai. Ok... the army cannot keep marching all over the country 365 days, 24X7 and immediately come to action when such a situation arises. But, compared to all other cities Mumbai has been through hell more number of times. Still a lot is lacking on the part of administration.
Friends and family have been calling incessantly since last night. All of them telling me the same thing "Don't venture out." Ok, i wont jump into a cab or bus and go to Colaba to have dinner or catch a movie at Sterling today and may be for the next 3-4 days. But how long can we restrict ourselves. And why should we?
I am not scared of this situation. It is a very weird feeling... as if somebody has taken away our freedom... as if some other people are trying to control our lives... people who think they are stronger than us. They are not. But it has to be proved to them. And that can be done only when we stop fighting amongst ourselves. Will that day ever come?
Half an hour back I went to the sea face just to have a look at the city skyline... whether it looked any different. It didn't. The lights at the governor's house, malabar hill and marine drive looked the same at least from this distance. It looked like any other evening. But it isn't the same.
Last night around 10:30 pm, I was flipping through the pages of Bombay Times to see if there is a late night show of any decent movie aroung south bombay. I was wondering whether i should go to INOX (nariman point) or Metro Adlabs. The shows at both these places were just 15 mins apart and i was still deciding when a friend called up and asked me to switch on the tv. As i was talking to him, i could hear loud noises which seemed like thunder (or blasts) and finally when i set the tv at NDTV, i saw the visuals from Leopold cafe. Speechless...
At that time it wasn't clear as to what actually happened. Initial reports said that it seemed like a gangwar as there were "serial firings". Then slowly the news kept coming from CST, Taj, Oberoi, Trident, Nariman House and others... By midnight it was clear that it is a terror attack (once again!!!), but this time it was different. This time it wasn't bombs planted all over the city. This time they themselves came prepared for an active attack at several places in the city, killing the rich and the affluent at luxury hotels, the common commuters at CST and the police personnel.
If it can happen in the premises of the Parliament, it can happen anywhere in the country. But the question is "Are we equipped to deal with such situations?". It took more than 3 hours for the state police to realize the enormity of the situation and then NSG and army were called to Mumbai. Ok... the army cannot keep marching all over the country 365 days, 24X7 and immediately come to action when such a situation arises. But, compared to all other cities Mumbai has been through hell more number of times. Still a lot is lacking on the part of administration.
Friends and family have been calling incessantly since last night. All of them telling me the same thing "Don't venture out." Ok, i wont jump into a cab or bus and go to Colaba to have dinner or catch a movie at Sterling today and may be for the next 3-4 days. But how long can we restrict ourselves. And why should we?
I am not scared of this situation. It is a very weird feeling... as if somebody has taken away our freedom... as if some other people are trying to control our lives... people who think they are stronger than us. They are not. But it has to be proved to them. And that can be done only when we stop fighting amongst ourselves. Will that day ever come?
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