PEOPLE from different walks of life in Mumbai got together on Wednesday to commemorate the martyrs and victims of the terror attacks in the city on November 26, 2008 and pay tributes. The National Security Guard (NSG) conducted the “Neverever” memorial at the Gateway of India to honour the martyrs, survivors and all victims of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. The solemn observance was to reaffirm the nation’s resolve that such an assault must never ever recur, the NSG said. Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti said, “They stood in the line of fire, so Mumbai could stand again. Remembering the brave souls who defended Mumbai in its darkest hour. In the longest night, bravery burned the brightest.

 

Honouring the courage that rises, steady and bright, guiding us forward." As the country marks the anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, leaders, officials and survivors remembered the victims of one of India’s worst terror strikes. Recalling the horror of the 2008 attacks, senior BJP leader Prakash Javadekar said the incident remains impossible to forget even after nearly two decades. “No one can forget 26/11 even after seventeen years. The manner in which the attack was carried out and the way Pakistan spread terrorism was severe and horrifying,” Javadekar said, adding that the assault was among the most ruthless terror operations India had witnessed. He noted that hundreds of people were killed and several police officers were martyred as the attackers targeted multiple locations in the city.

 

“The Mumbai terror attack was ruthless… Hundreds of people were killed, several police officers lost their lives, and the attack took place at multiple locations, making it very different and deeply tragic,” he said. The Maharashtra Police are drafting a drone-use policy to strengthen security and surveillance in key cities, including Mumbai, as part of preparations against unconventional terror threats, a senior official said. As Mumbai marks the 17th anniversary of the 26/11 terror attacks carried out by 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists from Pakistan, the city has significantly strengthened its police force with modern equipment and advanced technology to counter future threats, the official said. Earlier reports had warned that future terror strikes could involve unconventional methods. In response, the city and state police have enhanced training, strengthened capabilities, and equipped personnel with modern weapons and technology to neutralise any threat, he said.

 

While upgrading themselves with the latest technology, the state police, along with the central agencies, are working on a drone-use policy for the security and surveillance of important cities, including Mumbai, he said. “The Maharashtra Government is working on a drone-use policy and its blueprint has been prepared by the State police’s elite commando unit Force One with the help of the central agencies,” the official said. After building the capability of the force in using drones, there will be a drone unit in the police force, including Mumbai, he said. As per policy, the timing and locations of drone deployments will be decided based on situational needs, the official said, adding that drones will aid surveillance not only in megacities but also in Naxal-affected areas.

 

The Government has also focused on coastal security, and many things are being done to strengthen the coasts. Besides the available patrolling boats and interceptors for the marine police, the Government has also ordered 20 more interceptor boats for the State police force. There is good coordination between all the coastal security stakeholders, including police, Coast Guard and Navy, and their meetings are held regularly to avoid any untoward incident in the Arabian Sea, the official said. During the 2008 Mumbai terror attack, terrorists had used the sea route, while explosives for the 1993 serial blasts were also brought the same way. In view of this threat, all landing points in the city and other coastal districts are now secured by police, he said. “Our security agencies have modernised the radar system. We are also using drones for aerial surveillance,” he said, adding that the Government is meeting the requirements of the coastal police. Mumbai is under elaborate CCTV surveillance, enabling police to respond swiftly and avert any untoward incident, the official pointed out. The Government has now decided to initiate the third phase of the CCTV installation project, sanctioning Rs 2,140 crore for it, he informed. Under the project, started in Mumbai after the 2008 terror attack, 5,442 CCTVs were installed in the first phase and 5,069 in the second phase. In the third phase, 866 more CCTVs will be installed, the official said. Besides installing new CCTVs, the Government is also enhancing the surveillance capacity of the existing devices by integrating facial recognition and AI-based video analytics, he said. “Mumbai will be one of the safest cities in the world in the next couple of years,” the official assured. bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb World taking note of India’s anti-terror campaigns: Shah NEW DELHI, Nov 26 (PTI) bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb UNION Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said the Modi Government’s zero-tolerance policy against terrorism is clear, and the entire world is appreciating and providing broad support to India’s anti-terrorism campaigns. Paying respects to soldiers who sacrificed their lives during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, Shah said in a post on X that terrorism is not a curse for just one country, but for the entire human race. In his message in Hindi, the Home Minister said, “On this very day in the year 2008, terrorists carried out a cowardly attack on Mumbai and committed heinous and inhuman acts. “I pay my respects to the brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives while facing the Mumbai terrorist attacks, and I offer my tributes to all the people who lost their lives in the cowardly attack.” “The Modi Government’s zero-tolerance policy against terrorism is clear, and the entire world is appreciating and providing broad support to India’s anti-terrorism campaigns,” Shah said. bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb Some justice delivered but conspirators still ‘hiding’ in Pakistan, says Nikam PUNE, Nov 26 (PTI) bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb NOTED lawyer and Rajya Sabha member Ujjwal Nikam has said that while justice has been delivered to some extent to victims of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, their conspirators are “still hiding in Pakistan”. Talking to PTI Videos on the eve of the 17th anniversary of the 26/11 terror attacks on Tuesday, Nikam said Pakistan continues to make “pretences”, having arrested eight or nine persons, yet the status of their trials remains unknown. Citing the success of Operation Sindoor, India’s military operation after the Pahalgam terror attack, Nikam said persons like Hafiz Saeed and Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, who masterminded the “entire conspiracy with help from ISI” for the 26/11 attack, must also be brought under the grip of the law. As many as 166 people lost their lives and more than 300 were injured after 10 terrorists from Pakistan launched simultaneous attacks in several parts of Mumbai on November 26, 2008. Ten armed militants from the Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) entered the city via the sea and carried out a series of coordinated attacks across multiple high-profile locations, including the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, Oberoi Trident Hotel, CST Railway Station, and Nariman House. Nikam was the special public prosecutor in the trial of Ajmal Kasab, the lone Pakistani terrorist captured during the attack and later sentenced to death. “There is a question in the minds of every Indian about whether the families who lost their loved ones in the 26/11 terrorist attack received full justice? I would say we have provided justice to some extent, with Kasab being sentenced to death through the legal process. But those who conspired in this attack are still hiding in Pakistan,” Nikam said. “Pakistan is still making pretences. They have arrested eight or nine persons, but no one knows about the status of their trials,” he added. Nikam said that after the 26/11 attack, Mumbai’s security was tightened, but the recent incident (blast) in Delhi is very concerning. “This makes me wonder where our education system is taking us. Pakistan wants to create divisions and conflicts within us. Therefore, from the recent Delhi incident, we should understand that the people of this country must kindle one feeling...That we are all Indians,” he said. “We are Indians, regardless of how educated you are or on what basis you judge. The education and atmosphere of this country are such that different castes and religious communities live together. But some forces, including Pakistan, are spoiling that peace. So we must think deeply about this,” Nikam said. A high-intensity blast near the Red Fort in Delhi on November 10 claimed 15 lives and left several others injured.