Delivering a powerful statement
Redundant idea of security
- Sangai Express Editorial :: August 12, 2013 -

Bomb blast outside Manipur CM's high security zone residence :: 10 August 2013

Not a powerful blast, but a powerful statement.

No casualty, not even substantial damages on the wall, but nonetheless a statement has been delivered.

Successfully.

This is significant.

Perhaps more significant could be the point that in delivering a statement, the ugly underbelly of the State Government lies exposed for one and all to see.

The bomb blast at the gate of the Chief Minister’s official bungalow in the evening of August 10 was not the first and if there is no radical change in the mindset of the people running the show of providing security to the VVIPs, it will not be the last either.

Two points can be factored in on why underground outfits manage to deliver such powerful statements, without physically harming anyone at crucial moments.

One of course would be the intent of purpose on the part of the armed outfits and the other would be the utter failure on the part of the Government to understand that ensuring security for the VVIPs and by extension the public, goes much more beyond intensifying frisking and conducting search operations and rounding up some youngsters who happened not to have any identification documents with them.

For the last few days, all the Imphal based newspapers have been reporting on the search operations and surprise checks conducted in the commercial areas of the capital city, as part of the overall security measures taken up ahead of the Independence Day celebration.

This is the same old routine which Manipur has BEEN witnessing for decades.

There can be no foolproof security measures.

This is a given.

But the utter failure of the Government and its agencies to understand the concept of security beyond conducting frisking exercises and search operations lay exposed in the admission of the Deputy Chief Minister that the CCTV cameras installed at vital points in Imphal have gone kaput for want of power back up.

This is a laugh, especially in this age and time when technology has become indispensable on matters related to security.

So instead of focusing on how to utilise the technology available, the 12 wise people and their security advisors came up with the ‘brilliant’ idea of closing one side of the road at the northern side of the CM’s residence to motorists, after a certain hour in the evening.

Damn the inconveniences faced by the public.

It is this mindset which is revolting.

CCTVs are not decorative pieces.

They are installed with a specific purpose, primarily for security reasons and if the Government is going to fall back on the alibi of irregular power supply for reducing the high tech gadgets to mere decorative pieces, then it is not a comfortable thought at all.

Forget about the irregular power supply, it has also emerged that the State Government conveniently overlooked the maintenance clause with the agency which was entrusted with the task of installing the CCTV cameras.

The bomb blast at the gate of the Chief Minister’s official residence was a statement made by an armed outfit and in admitting that the CCTV cameras have become redundant and useless, the State Government too has delivered a statement, a statement which has apathy, lethargy and ineptness written all over it.

If the matter was not so serious, it would have surely elicited guffaws from all.

The mentality has to change and fast.

The idea and understanding of security should move beyond deploying policemen on duty and conducting frisking exercises.

It should move beyond barking out orders to the motorists to take a detour, because the residence of a VVIP lies along the route.

In this age when technology has become increasingly indispensable in security related matters, it is hard to digest that the CCTVs cannot function because of lack of power back up.

On hindsight this should not come as too big a surprise, for remember this is the same dispensation which was under the impression that ensuring the security of the Chief Minister would lie in blocking all the roads that lead to his official residence to the common people after a certain hour in the evening.

Will not be surprised if this farce is repeated this time round, again.