The high-power weekly meeting that was introduced after the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai to review the security preparedness across state was called off after the Democratic Front government came to power in 2009.
The high-power weekly meeting that was introduced after the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai to review the security preparedness across state was called off after the Democratic Front government came to power in 2009.
“After the 26/11 attack, the then home minister Jayant Patil had made weekly review mandatory. The other members included additional chief secretary home, state intelligence bureau chief, city police commissioner and state director general of police,” highly-placed government sources said.
However, after the elections when RR Patil took charge, the meetings were suspended. Instead, it has been left to the IB to review the security.
“Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan expressed surprise and wondered why the meetings were suspended,” a senior officer in the Mantralaya said.
Sources said, “The significance of the meetings signaled the remote control remained in the hands of the home minister. Apart from enabling the minister to update himself on security aspects, it also provided the forum to tackle the shortcomings and gauge the challenges on a weekly basis. It also displayed the collective working of the home administration and the police force.”
Currently, every unit works independently. Only when there is some crisis (like the serial bomb blasts) the chiefs come together. Chavan is determined to restore some of the policy decisions taken during Jayant’s (Patil) 10-month tenure as home minister.
Another aspect that came to light was the state security council, constituted after 26/11, has almost become defunct. The reports prepared by the 62-member council were submitted to the CM on Wednesday. In the last two years, there has not been a single council meeting.
The home ministry claims to have executed 99% of RD Pradhan Committee’s recommendations to strengthen the police force, but there are major shortcomings in all sectors.
The unaccomplished task includes the decision to send five teams comprising bright police officers to Israel, London, Chicago, New York, Shanghai and Beijing to study the model to tackle terrorism. However, only one team has visited Israel so far.
Questions are also being raised as to why the decision to install 5,000 CCTVs could not be implemented in the last two years despite decisions taken by the government.
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