'We need people to be more alert'

From 26/11 to 13/7, terror has taken a full cycle in India's financial capital. There are countless questions about the alertness of the Mumbai police force and the inputs from the intelligence agencies.

During the 26/11 attacks, J K Dutt led the National Security Guard in neutralising terrorists at various locations. Dutt has been watching the developments and adds that it is rubbish to say the blasts were of low intensity.

Dutt feels it is time the public acts in a more cautious manner because you cannot expect the police to be at each and every place at all times.

Over to J K Dutt:

How can one say that this were low intensity blasts?

Watching the events unfold I can say this were high intensity blasts. Precious lives have been lost. The investigations will give us a better picture soon. At the moment it is too early to say anything and I would not point fingers at anyone.

Between 26/11 and this attack, there have been a lot of changes. On the security front things have been pepped up no doubt. Hubs have been set up and the intelligence mechanism has been revamped.

I would not agree with your view when you say that post 26/11 India has geared up more to face fidayeen-style attacks rather than bomb blasts. Prior to 26/11 there have been blasts and I think we are geared up for both types of attacks.

However, 26/11 was a departure which demanded that we be prepared for these types of attacks too.

I agree with the home minister when he says that every city in India is vulnerable. It is not possible to get pin-pointed intelligence all the time. We are doing everything it takes to ensure that our country is safe.

We need people to be more alert. They are the ones who should report a suspicion and cannot afford to be casual about anything anymore.

People visiting market areas need to re-organise themselves and lessons need to be learnt from incidents like these. It is not fair to point a finger at the police all the time since it is common sense that they cannot be at all places at all times.

I feel that the dependance on technology must increase. We need more CCTVs (close circuit television cameras) as these can prove helpful in such cases.