Mumbai's Date With Terror.
It has been almost a week since the terror strikes in Mumbai crippled India. Life is normal now and Mumbai is back to business as usual. Much has been written and discussed about these attacks all over the world.
On 26th of November it was a usual working day for every Indian. I had just finished having my dinner when I turned on the TV set that I came to know that two ruthless terrorists had opened fire at the CST station, killing 57 people. I was shocked like most others and didn't realize the magnitude of the attacks until I heard the other news about similar attacks at Café Leopold and other south Mumbai hotspots. The terrorists went on a rampage firing cold-bloodedly at the citizens. They even went as far as abandoning a police van!. Luxury hotels like Taj Mahal Hotel and the Oberoi Trident Hotel along with the Nariman House, the Jewish centre in Mumbai, were attacked and reduced to shambles. A bloody and long battle stretching over 2 days followed between the brave National Security Guards and the Marine Commandos and the terrorists. 9 terrorists were killed and 1 of them caught and interrogated. Kudos to the army!
Schools and universities were shut for a day and there was an unexplainable fear everybody felt. Next two days as hostages were released and terrorists eliminated, there sure was an air of relief, but the body count rose up drastically. 26th November was India's darkest night for sure.
The terrorists wanted to target the average Indian train traveler who travels through the CST station everyday, the beer guzzling youth and foreigners at a popular café and finally the attack on the city's elitist , foreign delegates an expats at the magnificient Taj and the Oberoi towers. The Jewish community's centre too was the prime target. The terrorists kept the city at gun-point for about 50 hours.
The aftereffects of the attack were painful and in a word unbearable as the once landmark of Mumbai, the Taj was down in debris from the inside. As smoke emerged out from the splendid 106 year old structure and pool of blood accumulated in the hotel, tears rolled down everybody's cheeks and everybody seemed to ask just one question, how could this happen?
After a week, life has returned back to normalcy, security has been increased at every important part in the city. Mumbai is back to business. The resilience of Mumbai has been tested a few times even before this but the city did not crumble. The legendary spirit continues and the unity and solidarity that people showed during this crisis is definitely the stuff legends are made of.
The tolerance of the city and the cosmopolitan culture of the city has won over the fanaticism and evil ideas of the terrorists across the borders. They could kill many lives couldn't shatter the spirit of Mumbai. As the bodies charred and many last rites performed Mumbai lives on. The spirit stays on forever!
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