The Boston Marathon was rocked by two blasts on Monday afternoon, killing at least 3 and injuring more than 140 people. The attack on the marathon, which is considered a prestigious event, yet again raises the question whether our city is prepared to handle such an eventuality? dna finds out
In Pune, mock drills are no longer being carried out
There are many lessons for Pune and India to learn from the bomb blasts at the Boston Marathon. The key lesson is that disaster response drills must be held for the public at regular intervals. By conducting such drills, an ordinary person would know how to respond and not panic in case of a terror attack.
One major issue is that there is no disaster management plan in place in case of a terror attack in the city. We have disaster management plan only for natural disasters. The bigger problem is that there is no clarity on who is in charge when there is a terror attack.
Is it the collector or the Pune city police chief? a
Prima facie, the Boston Marathon blasts appear to be the work of a jihadi outfit. It shows that the Americans are lowering their guard and becoming lax. It also indicates that in the future, sporting events will be targeted. Last year, some mock drills were carried out in the city but now it seems that they have been stopped. Set aside Boston, have we even learnt anything from the Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks or the German Bakery blast?
Maj gen (retd) SCN Jatar, president, Nagrik Chetna Manch
This attack proves the fact that US is not invincible
The discipline with which the US responded to the blasts at the Boston Marathon is not surprising as these same qualities were displayed during the September 2001 terror attacks. This attack also proves the fact that US is not invincible and is still vulnerable to terror attacks. The attacks indicates both a resurgence of jihadi groups as well as carelessness on the part of America. The countries across the world must give a serious thought on how the Boston Marathon, which is considered a prestigious event, was targeted. The terror groups are clearly hell-bent on giving Americans a tough time.
Post 9/11, the US set up a department of homeland security, which coordinates all the intelligence inputs at one place. We too need such an agency in India, but the attempt to set it up has been stalled because of federalism concerns raised by the state governments. The governments seem to be more bothered about federalism rather than protecting people’s lives. There is a need for the system in our country to be more pro-active.
Madhav Godbole, former Union home secretary
Sports events across the world could be target for terror attacks
This blast is a wake-up call to all the sports bodies in Pune. They need to take the security issue seriously and be prepared in case of such unexpected events. What happened in Boston today can easily happen in Pune tomorrow, given our security situation being so lax. Pune is one of the most active cities when it comes to sports. The number of events held here are high compared to other cities in India.
We could also be a favourite target of the terrorists because of the number of dams we have and being the army base. What is troubling is that the blast happened during the Boston Marathon, which is one of the most prestigious marathons in the world. One would expect security to be reasonably tight in such events.
As a sportsman, I feel that sports events across the world could be a target for such terror attacks. One aspect to keep in mind is that providing security to an event like a marathon, which sprawls over 42-km, is very tough. It is not like an IPL match or a tennis match, where it is easier to provide security. Not just the police, but even citizens need to be more prepared.
Sangram Chaphekar, national-level tennis player
America’s disaster mgmt functions systematically
The twin-blast incident during the Boston Marathon is a tragic occurrence. However, it is noteworthy that in the last 12 years since 9/11, the Americans have been able to prevent many such blasts in the past. It shows that the country’s intelligence is very strong and it is better prepared to prevent such attacks. Also, America’s disaster management is systematic and better prepared in handling terror attacks. As far as the Boston Marathon is concerned, it is very difficult to provide foolproof security for such an event.
In Pune too, such major events are held regularly. We need to step up security during such events. In our country, there is a lot of confusion and disorganisation when it comes to tackling terror attacks. It is not fair to blame the police alone when crowds gather around a bomb blast site. This is because India’s population density is very high. The Boston attack shows that there is a need for strong intelligence in every state in India, which is currently very poor.
Jayant Umranikar, senior (retd) IPS officer and former DGP (anti-Naxal operations)
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