Samjhauta Tragedy - The Security Lapse

According to a report that I read in Outlook magazine, the bombs had minimal use of metals so that the bombers could walk through security check easily. Add to that as it turned out, the metal detectors were de-funct on Feb'18th...This lapse in security checks may be one of the prime reasons for the mayhem caused...

But then who cares, another report, enquiry committee, judicial verdict,....... ?

Yup, there was no checking, so even if they had carried a full metal coated bomb, no one would have detected it

Sigh...I was wondering how long before the "security lapse" bogey would come up. There is NO way of securing ANY person, forget about an entire country of over one billion people ALL the time! Or to quote the IRA after a botched attempt to assassinate the British political leadership: "You have to be lucky 100% of the time, we only need to get lucky once."

I am not saying that there isn't room for improvement - so don't jump down my throat yet. But it would need a lot more than "corruption" and "accountability."

How many of us realise that the two railway policemen who died in the train made less money than most "call centre" workers that liberal activists like to complain about. And yet we expect them to die for their jobs when we need (Samjhauta, Parliament, the list goes on...) Do we know or care that over 50% of traffic cops in cities develop serious chest diseases within 3 years of joining the service. Diseases including cancer! What is needed is better pay and improved working conditions for our policemen, and respect for their efforts which is sorely lacking.

Beyond that - I am always surprised that the average person pays ZERO attention to their own security. How often does anyone here get into a train and check for unclaimed luggage? How often do we complain because there is an unclaimed bag left in a shop, or market or public place?

(For the record - I do! But then my dad is a "security" type!)

Ever taken walk through Lajpat Nagar at Diwali? Ten thousand policemen could not secure that area without cooperation and participation of the citizenry.

I have watched people refusing to cooperate with security personnel at airports (one memorable occasion showed that the man who threw his weight around at IGI security became an absolute sheep when faced with the gora securitywallahs at Heathrow!).

Yes, there WERE security lapses on samjhauta: But lets be honest - they include the passengers who were travelling in the train and took no notice of passengers leaving luggage behind.

You speak about corruption. The question is, where does it begin? Is it really only in the babudom which you mention, or in the people whom we appoint as leaders - or is it that there is something in us individuals which can be bought over? Which means that corruption is an issue which each of us needs to confront at some level, in our personal lives as well?

Anamika, I agree partially that we cannot protect everyone all the time, although I am not so sure about whether we can absolve individual policemen or babudom of corruption just because they get paid less. I can use that argument to justify any white collar crime because most such crimes are to get more money. That is not to say that their work is not appreciated.
Why are policemen in the western countries more respected ? Because you know that there is a lesser chance that they will be prone to corruption and that they will perform their work as assigned.
My article was more about not having a security policy in place for a high risk object.

Ashish: "...although I am not so sure about whether we can absolve individual policemen or babudom of corruption just because they get paid less...Why are policemen in the western countries more respected ? Because you know that there is a lesser chance that they will be prone to corruption and that they will perform their work as assigned."

I am not saying that there aren't security lapses or indeed corruption. However I have run out of patience with people who talk of "corruption" in India as if its somehow separate from ourselves.

The reality is that the SAME person in Delhi, Mumbai or Bangalore (or Lucknow, Amritsar, armpit-of-nowhere) who will complain of "corruption" is quite likely to pay up for a "quick service" or more insiduously "call up somebody in the system" to get things done.

I have watched people abuse cops who are trying to do their jobs - stopping for traffic violation, drunk driving, basic train search for bombs, or airport surveillance. And guess what - perfectly well-educated "middle-class urban" types will protest louder and harder and threaten the poor constable with dire consequences. And the SAME people would never dare to speak disrespectfully to a cop the same way, or offer a bribe or threaten him with reporting to some higher official - when they are in a Western country.

I guess my point is that its time to stop pointing fingers at the "sytem" and "corruption" unless we are willing to take a stand and clean it up on our own individual levels.

I totally agree with you on this point, people abuse cops or other civil servants because they believe that either they can brow-beat the policemen with either higher influence or money.
Why we believe that we can do this ? I specifically say we because I believe that all of us are guilty in this. Why has all this happened ? - that is one big post totally.