Debate will always be the stronger weapon

There has been a lot of crazy-talk recently about a possible "military intervention" by India.

AUFKM?!!!

Sure we need to do something extra-ordinary- Yes, we have earned international license for it.

And this time we won't be bound my the usual 'calls for restraint' by the International-community.
But seriously?
Military Intervention??.....known to some as "War"??
LOL!

Just like the Mumbai-attacks have unified India to some extent, Pakistan would be gifted with a reason to unify behind a common cause against India, if we gave them a reason to do so. Already, in Pakistan, in the matter of the US-bombings of their border areas, there is equal outrage amongst the Mainstream as well as the Radicals.

Today's wars are fought equally on the economic-warfield, and through covert means - and India has the means to do it. The overt use of the Military nowadays is only as a deterrent - and here India although it has the means, lacks the Political or Financial clout (recessions affect war too!) that the P-5 superpowers do.

And exactly who's means are we furthering when people say "jaake maar do" or "sabak sikhao"... Not ours, not the Pakistani mainstream's - it would be playing into the hands of the anti-India lot - The radicals and their sympathizers. I cannot imagine that the average-Joe in Pakistan (average-Javed?) would like to hop across the border to kill Indians, nor have his country torn apart through military force or disintegrate into anarchy at the hands of extremists.

And the Indian voice we hear now - baying for blood - That's a gut-reaction, and it should be recognized as one. India, mind you- not just J&K, would doom itself to Jihad for the next 100years, for the sake of acting on a public gut reaction.

While action is necessary, Peace is the ultimate goal....If you had asked me a month back if i expected Indo-Pak peace within my lifetime- my answer was 'Perhaps'. But if we ever make the mistake of putting such a rash step forward, we'd be likely to slip 10 steps back in our own arc of progress.

We need to normalize things in the public sphere. Amp things up in the diplomatic sphere. And lay groundwork now for a political consensus that lasts beyond successive governments- sufficiently long enough to make our foreign-policy credible and to see results with our neighbors.
Seriously- anything military should not be an option.

Technorati Tags: peace, terror, indo pak

Lessons from the Mumbai Terror tragedy - Too Little Practice (Part 4/4)

What went Wrong - Too little Practice:
Even though everyone who participated in the encounter got the job done...it barely got done, and now noone can ever say that a particular way would/could have resulted in a different outcome. But the familiarity of each player with the next was very apparent.

Ideally: There should be dedicated Liason-units which develop intimate familiarity with any other agencies their own agency might be expected to work with, depending on the situation. For instance, in case of a Terror-situation A,B,C agencies do G,H,I functions while in a Natural-Disaster-situation X,Y,Z and A,B agencies do P,Q,R functions.

Unless the situations are hypothetically imagined, and planned for, and then rehearsed - in mock, anything else would be "winging it" when the real thing happens, with familiar dissapointing results. Also, the Liason-units must be tested to actually work, and not to just cover their respective organizations asses.
 

'Ind'eally: Liason-units are expected to be non-functioning and for half-hearted rehearsals to be the norm - unless, these itself are included into the compulsary machinery of the Govt by making them auditable. Use the red tape! Make inter-operability check-able and involve private consultants to keep things fresh and relevant, and accounted.


This is post 4 of a 4part article. Read Part 1: Introduction Part 2: Too Many Heroes Part 3: Too Many Voices
Technorati Tags: terror, terrorism, terrorist, mumbai, bombay, india, taj, trident, taj mahal hotel, oberoi, indo pak

Lessons from the Mumbai Terror tragedy - Too Many Voices (Part 3/4)

What went wrong - Too many Voices:
Perhaps there is a hesitation to setup a unified command in any situation, because any lapse in judgement would be 'pinned' on the authority-figure in command. So, we saw people come, go in, rush out - and claim their credit immediately, and precautionarily, before anything untoward could happen following their involvement. Meanwhile, noone from the public got the impression of any one person being in charge, and even the people who gave the interview were frequently misinformed.

Ideally: There should be just one voice - or maybe two; Centre & State - giving responses, to the press and issuing statements and updates. A strict Gag-order must be enforced and any leaks/unofficial statements must be promptly and categorically addressed as 'Unofficial' before they become the sensational sub-story that whips up passion and creates pressure on the agencies to meet the public's expectation of justice.


'Ind'eally: Indian journalism doesn't score very high on ethics as it is. And it has been ages since a newpaper or a media-house was regarded for it's honest unbiased reporting, without any 'leanings'.

Given that, and the shamelessly headline-hungry hacks who are the present face of the Indian Press - especially those of New Media - it is difficult to expect that the press will attain enlightenment overnight, and begin responsible journalism instead of sensational gossip-mongering or stop claiming to be the 'voice of the masses'/'keeping a check on the polity' instead of realizing it's true calling as a builder of society, acting in the joint interest of the people and the powers, not the people versus the powers.

What we need are media-savvy departments, who realize realize the impact of their words, and who talk in clear factual terms - not giving information until it is appropriate and verified, also also, importantly, who have the cojones to say "No" "Until it becomes clear" or even "I cannot divulge that information", instead of giving opinions and hazarding guesses and increasing the confusion. If there is a strong voice booming out the Official line, the press will have to faithfully report it and the people will also know where
to turn to and whom to ask of.

This is post 3 of a 4part article. Read Part 1: Introduction Part 2: Too Many Heroes Part 4: Too Little Practice
Technorati Tags: terror, terrorism, terrorist, mumbai, bombay, india, taj, trident, taj mahal hotel, oberoi, indo pak

Lessons from the Mumbai Terror tragedy - Too Many Heroes (Part 2/4)

What went wrong - Too Many Heroes:
There were too many people involved - the general police, the ATS, the MARCOS/Navy, the NSG, the regular Army, and the intelligence agencies not to mention the medical and fire services. Their presence was to be expected perhaps, but the manner in which they conducted themselves amongst the whole, made it seem as if each was functioning in parallel or at best, with only loose interaction. Often times there was no secure perimeter, and there were police-personnel and soldiers literally strewn about all over, without much instruction. Manpower was poured in, that is for sure, but all of it did not seem properly utilized.

Ideally: A planned heirarchy of different Agencies should swing into action (If required, a makeshift arrangement until the duties can be rotated to the correct authority, once the situation permits). The core-competency of each should decide the way in which the heirarchy is structured. Asking one agency to perform the functions better performed by another, and then expecting equal results is bad management. Similarly, involving more than the necessary institutions and expecting efficient functioning is asking for trouble- too many cooks spoil the broth.


'Ind'eally: Look, i can't imagine that Indian Agencies will ever learn to work together. At least, not as long as 'Responsibility' is feared as a potential chance to getting one's fingers burnt, and as long as the heads of institutions cozy up to varied Political Godfathers - which will be forever.

But, since we're a Democracy, why not look at shared responsibility - Divide the Risk! - the fear of which makes our organizations impotent - with a "Knights-of-the-round-table" arrangement, where a collective decision is then the official decision to be executed. And is then promptly executed, with the collective knowledge of all involved.

This is post 2 of a 4part article. Read Part 1: Introduction Part 3: Too Many Voices Part 4: Too Little Practice
Technorati Tags: terror, terrorism, terrorist, mumbai, bombay, india, taj, trident, taj mahal hotel, oberoi, indo pak

Lessons from the Mumbai Terror tragedy - Introduction (Part 1/4)

The recent terror attacks in Mumbai got me thinking on how better things could have been managed. I am proud of the way we came together as a nation, and of the people who worked on the frontlines against terror, but i think the whole episode made visible a lot of things to improve.

I put down a few points on paper during the attacks itself, which i later expanded on - under 3 headings:

1. What Went Wrong - Things that caught my eye, which went wrong/could be better.
   
2. Ideally - What i think we should ideally aspire for, but which i realize is utopian to expect.
   
3. 'Ind'eally - What best can happen- keeping in mind the functioning of a country like ours.

I crystallized things down to 3 points that i feel strongly about, that i now plan to blog about in a 3part-series.


This is post 1 of a 4part article. Read Part 2: Too Many Heroes Part 3: Too Many Voices Part 4: Too Little Practice
Technorati Tags: terror, terrorism, terrorist, mumbai, bombay, india, taj, trident, taj mahal hotel, oberoi, indo pak

"Bengalooru- We close regularly"

Living in Bangalore means that you're milieu is pretty much at the mercy of thugs. Unemployed, illiterate, lumpish men who are only looking for a chance to vent their frustrations. And there are the politicians who always around to wreak havoc with nomal life.

Twice in the past 3 weeks...violence has broken out in the city. And on the 22nd of Jan 2007 curfew was clamped in many parts of east Bangalore including Bharati Nagar, Frazer town and Commercial Street.

This after the idiocy by the cops who allowed 2 groups to meet...and clash:
One, a rally protesting the unjust killing of the 'great martyr' Saddam Hussein lead by the most excellent C.K. Jaffer Sharief....held three weeks after Saddam’s execution.
And a rally organized by the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh which was as previously planned celebrating the birth centenary of its leader M.S. Golwalkar.

Stupidity!

Technorati Tags: riots, bangalore