UPDATE:  An email id has been provided. savemumbai@in.com
Email this address with in case they need to show citizen support in court.

There are a lot of questions being asked about how the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai could take place. Most of this seems like noise rather than any sort of concrete measure to improve security. A friend of mine has been involved with a PIL that is asking for an accounting on why numerous police modernization initiatives have gone nowhere. The Society of Indian Law Firms(SILF) and the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry are both involved as well.  In my mind this kind of PIL is far more productive than the abstain from voting, tax revolution, bomb Pakistan nonsense that is being forwarded on the internet and over sms’s.

The filing of the PIL got some coverage in the press but not enough. Here are some articled from Mint, Indian Express and DNA. This is not the flashy emotional appeal that the majority of the press seems to lap up. This is a substantive series of steps we would like our government to take and consequently the amount of coverage is limited.

My friend has asked me to help get the word out, and try and get as many people as possible to sign up here.

So what can you do?

First and foremost I would appreciate it if you could pass this message on as far and wide as possible. The more people who sign up for this the better. At the bottom of this post there is a little share this button. You can use that to email this post, or share it with anyone you would like to. Pass it through facebook, through orkut, through twitter anyway you can think of getting this in front of as many people as possible. There is a forum on the website www.abillionhands.com Its not very active right now but maybe we can change that.

Next step would be to take this out of cyberspace and into real life. I have some ideas for things we can do, but lets see how many people we can get to work on this.

If you would like to read the full text of the PIL you can download it from here.

Below is a Background Note about the PIL.

It has happened before and it could happen again. Mumbai has been attacked by terrorists over 15 times in the last 2 decades and by virtue of it’s position as the country’s financial capital, is a prime and vulnerable target for future attacks.

26/11 has yet again exposed the many weaknesses in Mumbai’s security systems. The audacious attack on 2 of Mumbai’s leading hotels and it’s key railway station has led to a tremendous loss of civilian and police lives and great damage to property. The anger and anguish amongst Mumbaikars is palpable. This time it cannot go to waste – it has to be channelised towards effecting constructive change for the City.

Mumbai has a more than 16 million strong population and just 42,000 policemen & women. Festivals, floods, fighting crimes and terrorist attacks…Mumbai’s brave police men and women put their lives on the line everyday. They help keep the wheels of India’s financial capital turning – but what have we done to help them?

Now the Society of Indian Law Firms, that represents India’s leading law firms, supported by a large group of leading business personalities in Mumbai and the Bombay CHamber of Commerce & Industry believe it’s high time Mumbai did something for it’s Police.

PIL : WHO & WHY?

- The Petitioner is the Society of Indian Law Firms supported by a group of concerned Mumbai citizens and business leaders from the City. On Thursday, India’s oldest chamber of commerce, the Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry joined the PIL. The Bombay Chamber has over 2000 member companies. It is for the first time in the Bombay Chamber’s history that it is backing citizen action of this sort.

- More training, modern equipment, better coordination, enhanced resources and an elite force that can deal promptly with terrorist attacks – the solutions are all known, discussed and debated. In many cases the State has even promised to implement measures to help better equip the Police. But little has come of it.

- Now the only option is to seek Court assistance in ensuring that all measures are taken to assist the Police in being better equipped to deal with the threat of 21st century terrorism

-The judiciary is the last standing pillar of democracy. Whenever all else has failed, the courts have come to the rescue of citizens – be it pertaining to the Environment, Heritage, Law & Order or Road Safety…

PIL has been a very effective tool used by Citizens to have their voices heard

- And so the SILF, Bombay Chamber and it’s supporting citizen team are now appealing to the Court to help ensure the State assists in modernising Mumbai’s Police

PIL: DETAILS

The PIL requests the Bombay High Court to direct the Union & the State (both, either/or wherever applicable)

a) Pursuant to the guarantee of ‘right to life’ in Article 21, the Union & the State should take all appropriate measures to meet the security threat to Mumbai

b) To disclose via affidavit all concrete steps being taken, with timeline and funding particulars, regarding establishment of Special Squad (Quick Response Team has been put together but not fully empowered)

c) Alongwith the above 2 points a) & b), the Union/State should

1. Permanently station NSG unit in Mumbai and wherever else required in Maharashtra

2. Provide sufficient coastal security coverage

3. Establish coordination mechanisms across Intelligence agencies, State Police and all Security Agencies

4. Assist, train and equip Police to meet new age terrorist threat

d) Alongwith a), b) & c), the Union/State should

1. Formulate and implement Crisis Management Plan

2. Procure and provide adequate equipment/vehicles/machinery (including Marine & Chopper units) for quick mobility via land/sea/air for effective patrolling, prevention and containment of crime/terrorist attack. This should be reserved for Police duties

3. Identify, fund and provide Surveillance Gear (such as CCTV coverage)

4. Implement the McKinsey Report that studied the Mumbai Police and advised on improvement and modernisation

e) Appoint Citizen Committee comprising of eminent citizens, retired judges and police officers to assist and advise on the implementation of all these measures.