Pathetic idea of VVIP security : Cooking up outlandish arrangements
- Sangai Express Editorial :: August 22, 2013 -

Idea of security : Following the blast near the CM's gate some days back, the two lane stretch of NH-2 being changed into a one way lane, causing traffic snarls and inconveniencing the public no end :: Pix - TSE

The attitude sucks. The mentality is sickening.

Damn the public, is the loud and clear message that has been rung out once again.

A bomb blast at the gate of the Chief Minister's residence just a few days before Independence Day and how does the State Government respond to the situation ?

Block one side of the road running next to the official residence of the Chief Minister and direct all vehicles to the other lane, after 5.30 pm everyday. So a single lane is turned into a double lane.

Talk about innovation.

Turning a two way lane, that too on a very busy stretch of National Highway-2, into a single lane, a decision triggered by a bomb blast and here is an example of a Government taking decisions on the basis of bomb blasts !

The State Government seems intent on not letting Delhi or the Congress Government at the Centre get the better of them when it comes to 'innovative' ideas.

So if the Congress Government at the Centre can turn a circle into a square by renaming Connaught Circle to Rajiv Square, the best way to beat this would be to turn a two lane National Highway into a single lane after 5.30 pm everyday.

The 12 wise people and the men lording over the security affairs of the State seem to be full of outlandish ideas.

The present arrangement should not come as a surprise if one looks back to a somewhat similar situation some years back.

A few years back, when the CM's residence came under Lethode bomb attacks, the Government in all its wisdom decided to block all the roads leading to the CM's residence after a certain hour in the evening, greatly inconveniencing the public.

The present arrangement is mild in comparison with the earlier arrangement, but the farce that runs through the two cases cannot be missed.

A brief sketch of the area where the CM's residence lies may be in line to get a better understanding of the inconvenience that people have to face after 5.30 pm.

The CM's residence lies in the heart of Imphal city, opposite to the Imphal General Post Office. It lies adjacent to the Police Headquarters and a little distance down to the southern side is the office of the Board of Secondary Education Manipur.

Other important offices, such as the New and Old Secretariat, the office of the SP, Imphal West, where the DIG Range I also sits, the BSNL head office are all located over a distance of not more than 500 metres from the CM's residence.

In other words a place which is choc-a-bloc with people and this should be more than enough to get a brief understanding of the extreme inconveniences that people have to face while passing anywhere near where the Chief Minister lives.

Creating a situation due to a mindset where the understanding of providing security to the VVIPs has not moved beyond frisking and checking and of course keeping certain zones off limit to the public.

Certainly does not fit into the universal understanding of ensuring security in this age of technology, intelligence sharing and gathering information with the aid of hi-tech gadgets.

Security for the VVIPs is a must, but it should not come at the expense of the public, just because the babus entrusted with this task continue to be caught in a time warp.

Lethargy and ineptness is written all over the decision to block one side of the two lane highway running parallel to the CM's bungalow.

Or if the people responsible for security arrangements of the Chief Minister are not ready to put their minds to work, why not shift the CM's residence to Leimakhong ?

Or if this is too far, then why not shift it to Mantripukhri, where the IGAR (S) sits ?

On the face, these suggestions may sound preposterous, but given the situation here and how things have been run and managed, nothing may sound preposterous.

At least these suggestions will not sound as preposterous as the present arrangement of blocking off one side of the road near the CM's residence.

For too long the people have been made to suffer the slobbish attitude and decisions of the men sitting in the corridors of power.