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Jagrut Mumbaikar is a joint initiative of the Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes to create and enhance awareness amongst the citizens of Mumbai towards protecting themselves and the city by curbing terrorism countering crime and various other domestic accidents. This program aims at establishing a one to one relationship between the citizens in order to manage the occurrence of residential crime more efficiently, while also attempting to address the security concerns currently being faced by the city. It empowers the citizens with an augmented sense of confidence and awareness, so that they can truly BE SECURE, FOR SURE. Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes have launched Jagrut Mumbaikar - an initiative to spread awareness within the citizens towards protection and equipment to curb terrorism, counter crime and domestic accidents. With the tag line BE SECURE FOR SURE this program, establishes a one to one relationship with the citizens to better manage the occurrence of residential crime whilst also attempting to address the security concerns currently being faced by the city. As part of the Jagrut Mumbaikar initiative the Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes will conduct a program in your society. A team of officers from the Mumbai Police Department will make a presentation on security precautions and safe living. Jagrut Mumbaikar’ program will include assistance and information on the following: Preventive measures that must be taken to curb terrorism, occurrence of crime and domestic accidents How to react when faced with a crisis situation. Awareness with regards to prevention and management of disasters Facilitation for better management and control in crisis situations Improvement of access and knowledge for citizens in an emergency. An initiative of this kind and magnitude aims at boosting the confidence of the citizens by making the Police more approachable and friendly. This aims at being a larger awareness and participation program involving the common man The intention is

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Page 1: Jagrut Mum

Jagrut Mumbaikar is a joint initiative of the Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes to create and enhance awareness amongst the citizens of Mumbai towards protecting themselves and the city by curbing terrorism countering crime and various other domestic accidents. This program aims at establishing a one to one relationship between the citizens in order to manage the occurrence of residential crime more efficiently, while also attempting to address the security concerns currently being faced by the city. It empowers the citizens with an augmented sense of confidence and awareness, so that they can truly BE SECURE, FOR SURE.

Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes have launched Jagrut Mumbaikar - an initiative to spread awareness within the citizens towards protection and equipment to curb terrorism, counter crime and domestic accidents. With the tag line BE SECURE FOR SURE this program, establishes a one to one relationship with the citizens to better manage the occurrence of residential crime whilst also attempting to address the security concerns currently being faced by the city. As part of the Jagrut Mumbaikar initiative the Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes will conduct a program in your society. A team of officers from the Mumbai Police Department will make a presentation on security precautions and safe living.

‘Jagrut Mumbaikar’ program will include assistance and information on the following:

Preventive measures that must be taken to curb terrorism, occurrence of crime and domestic accidents

How to react when faced with a crisis situation. Awareness with regards to prevention and management of disasters Facilitation for better management and control in crisis situations Improvement of access and knowledge for citizens in an emergency.

An initiative of this kind and magnitude aims at boosting the confidence of the citizens by making the Police more approachable and friendly. This aims at being a larger awareness and participation program involving the common man The intention is to make every Mumbaikar aware of his surroundings and the different facets of living a secure life in Mumbai. The initiative introduces every citizen of Mumbai to the ever changing needs of modern urban security and safety.

For participating in the Jagrut Mumbaikar Program you can fill in the registration form on the site. We will soon contact you and confirm the date and time for conducting the program in your society on a mutually agreed date. You can also email us at [email protected].

For any further clarifications on the Jagrut Mumbaikar initiative, you can call theEureka Forbes Helpline on 39883434 or Sms ‘SECURITY’ to 56006.

Email us at [email protected]

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Address - B1/B2, 701, 7th Floor, Marathon Innova,Marathon NextGen, Off Ganpatrao Kadam Marg,Lower Parel, Mumbai -400013, India

Media cov

The Protector,Mumbai

Issue: Jan-Feb 2010

COVER STORY  

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     Campaign Against Terrorism to Intensify

2010 Will Set the Security Agenda for the Next Decade - D. Sivanandhan, Commissioner of Police, Mumbai In a career spanning 34 years, D. Sivanandhan, Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, has donned many a cap, no doubt, covered with many a feather, though he seems to prefer a simple beret to an assertive peak. The choice is subtle and gentle, like the way he is. But make no mistake. Sivanandhan is tough and resolute. When he says, “My mission is to keep the Mumbai Police fighting-fit and battle-ready in 2010 to take on terrorism or to tackle any contingency,” he means it and you know, it is not an idle boast. Because, Sivanandhan has in a short period of seven months created Quick Response Teams (QRTs) comprising 1,000 men well-trained and armed to the teeth, established strong security infrastructure and taken various other initiatives. He has stepped up his security spending in fiscal year ending March 31 by 300 percent from Rs 36 cr to Rs 92 cr on his men, materials, training, weaponry, equipment and logistics support such as transport and communications. You are equally convinced when he says, “I vow to eradicate drunken driving in Mumbai.” Because, the conviction in his voice, the pain and anguish he feels in his heart for Traffic Police Sub-Inspector Dinanath Shinde, who was killed recently in a horrifying car crash caused by a drunken woman driver, percolates to you, touches you. In an interview with Dev Varam of The Mumbai PROTECTOR, Sivanandhan talks about various issues ranging from terrorism to police welfare with candour. Excerpts.

What is your agenda for 2010, the first year of the next decade, which may set the tone for the decade itself?We should look at 2010 against the backdrop of 2008 and 2009. In 2009 we did not have any terrorist attack all over the country. In 2010, very recently there was a terrorist attack in Lal Chowk in Jammu and Kashmir where two terrorists kept the army fighting there for more than 24 hours at bay. The year 2010 began that way. When Pakistan had given some respite in 2009 after a massive terrorist attack on Mumbai on 26/11 2008, we cannot forget or forgive that ghastly deed.So, for me 2010 means continuously preparing Mumbai Police for facing any terrorist attack. Every terrorist attack is going to be something new and novel. They are going to come up with their imagination and not ours. We may imagine and get ready for something. But they will be looking at our weak spots. Our media and other people are helping rather continuously exposing our preparedness and various other things. So the terrorists will go beyond that. I will have to expect the unexpected from the enemy and I will have to keep the police force ready for that contingency. The year 2010 is going set an agenda for the next 10 years. The entire police force in 2020 will have to be as battle-ready to fight terrorism as it is today. Terrorism is not going to go down, caste conflicts are not going to diminish or the bomb culture is not going to decrease. If ordinary stuff like ammonium nitrate is going to be used for making bombs anybody can feel encouraged to make an attempt to put together an explosive device. So we have to have a complete set of people, all policemen, who will be fighting-fit and battle-ready. And they will also have to be knowledgeable about IED bombs, terrorism and various other related issues. Coordination among them has to be at its best. We cannot be looking here and there and asking for the Army, Navy and Air Force to come and rescue them. That kind of situation of helplessness has to be changed. The police will have to help the entire country by being the first responders. For that, they have to equipped, trained accessorized. And that is what I am doing. We have done a lot in such a short time. In the next 10 years, we have to continuously be preparing the police for that. Alongside, the people will also have to be prepared to face terrorism.Besides fighting terrorism, what are your other priorities?

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Other than terrorism, there are the usual crimes; economic offences, cyber crime, the safety of women and senior citizens, etc. We have been doing a lot in controlling and preventing such crimes through normal policing as usual. Cyber and economic crimes bleed the people without their knowledge. In terms of the size of the money siphoned out of the country and the people, these crimes are very serious. But according to me, the crime that shocks the people's conscience most is terrorism. So I will focus on terrorism. While there are 42,000 men doing normal policing anyway, I have to be all the time thinking about terrorism and getting the police ready for the battles lying ahead. In the media my image is good. To be a role model, I have had to sacrifice and forego many things during the last 34 years. Reputation and character are not built overnight. They have to be built over a long period of time. I am living as a role model and what I am doing to the police force is encourage them to follow. And I am cutting them to size whoever they are and erasing the cancerous growth wherever it is. At the same time I am encouraging the good men and officers. Overall, we are encouraging as many good people as possible. There have been many initiatives in this regard, THE PROTECTOR magazine being one such, which is read by the people as well as the police. We have come up with the concept of 'Samvaad' under which, whatever I am doing is continually told to the police so they can improve. I am arranging lectures. For instance, Mrs. Jaya Row is going to talk on the topic - Invest in Yourself, which is about pursuing excellence through the Bhagavad Gita. Around 200 policemen are going to attend that. I am trying to motivate the policemen through lectures and yoga which help cleanse the body as well as the soul.Ultimately the policeman must know he is the best PRO. No PRO that I appoint can create an image which is not there. The image has to be created by one's own behaviour. Each one - the patrolman, the street constable - has to behave like a PRO; then only our image will improve. Cosmetic window dressing is not going to help. I am reaching out to my men through Samvaad and talking to them continuously, saying that their image has to be improved only by good behaviour and not by purchasing publicity. The conscientious people are already aware. My problem is with those who go to the gangsters' party and get me a bad name. Of the 42,000 policemen only five were there. They were also not dancing as the media wrongly portrayed them to be doing. But they were there and for that they have paid the price. Nobody else paid this kind of price so far except the policemen, the fact which the media does not appreciate. Is there a systemic approach to make policemen inculcate the right kind of values?We have got continuous training programmes, refresher courses, lectures and my addressing them, sending messages everyday about the good behaviour. When aberrations occurred we moved with alacrity to address them and drive home the message so that others could correct themselves. People have never improved even with the profound morals that Ramayana and Mahabharata portrayed. So the point that I repeatedly stress is the man's individual approach towards improving himself. Many people were trained along with me. But they have not behaved like me. They behaved differently for which they have paid the price. I am enjoying a reputation as you have said, because I have foregone so many things. So these are individual choices. But I for one as a leader would cut any cancerous growth ruthlessly without any fear.It has been seven months you took over as the police chief. Is Mumbai safer than before?Absolutely. Mumbai is much safer than before with around 1,000 Quick Response Teams (QRTs) which were not there earlier. I have armed them to the teeth with the most modern weapons. I have got the bullet-proof vehicles. If we had spent 36 crores of rupees last year, my spending by 31 March will be 92 crores. I am spending 92 crores only on terrorism preparation, more on combat vehicles, on QRT equipment, training, etc, an increase of almost 300 percent. If the parade I had shown you on 26/11 was impressive, what I am getting now is three times more impressive. That is my effort. I have convinced the government that we should spend money, to make the police better and stronger.Earlier, before 26/11, only 56 men were getting twice their salary and now there are 1,500 men in that category. There is no comparison between the numbers 56 and 1,500. It is a morale booster.

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Do you think the public perception of the police has changed?Definitely. Media has also helped in changing the perception of the people about the police. It is a joint effort.In recent months you have initiated several steps in motivating your men, through training. What steps you are taking to sustain that motivation?We have given them double their salary; we are going to give them more and more rewards; name the best officer and cop every month, so that they will be remembered. I am giving them more the DG's insignia and more medals. I am sure the Mumbai police will respond to these positive stimuli. These measures enthuse them to come out of their shell and do much better.Will they be pro-active?Absolutely. They are already proactive.You have many ongoing initiatives such as Jagrut Mumbaikar, Alert Mumbaikar, copconnect. etc. Have you been reviewing their progress?I have been reviewing all these programmes. Jagrut Mumbaikar is doing very well and people are responding to it enthusiastically. The campaign copconnect.in promoted through Shah Rukh Khan and various others in cinema theatres, is catching up well. Then there is 'Hamarisuraksha' which is also doing extremely well. For about 12 -14 years only 4,000 people have registered with it. Now, their number has shot up to 25,000, which is a phenomenal jump. That is tremendous success for me.Hamarisuraksha.com is a user-friendly software, where any senior citizen can enter his photograph, information about his relatives, whom to contact. There is a separate programme about his servants to be recorded; you can use a webcam and it is very user-friendly and anybody can operate. Most of the recent robberies and crimes were committed by the servants, whether in Malabar Hill or Malad areas. This website is very useful to keep a watch on the servants, to warn them and to track them down if necessary.People are encouraged and the credibility gap has thus been filled now. It's a good indication. The Mumbai Police is being looked at by the people in a positive and credible light. Of course, we have promoted the campaign. No fruit will fall on your head by merely looking at it. You have to make efforts, publicize, inform, meet the people and convince them.Tell us about your passion for the welfare and wellbeing of the police force…We have done extremely well in this field. Recently Home Minister R. R. Patil was at the police hospital which is being refurbished renovated at the cost of Rs 6.5 crore. We have already launched an ophthalmology centre at the cost of Rs 25 lakhs, with Dr. Natarajan of the Aditya Jyot Eye Hospital posted permanently there.We have also launched an executive health check programme for all the 42,000 men in the force. It is called “Operation Arogya” under which all the men will get a thorough health check-up. We have also got the best OPD centre at the newly reconstructed police hospital. All the doctors are enthusiastic about it. I have just written a personal letter to all the 70 consulting doctors to find out if they are happy and if they want me to do anything to make them more comfortable.There are gymnasiums coming up at various police stations. The Naigoan police headquarters has a gymnasium worth one crore of rupees. I am also rebuilding a kitchen at the police headquarters at a cost of Rs 55 lakhs, which will be most modern and hygienic to cater healthy and nutritious food to the policemen.I have been meeting policemen in large groups every Friday to address them and learn about their grievances.We have also come up with a calendar and distributed it among a select number of people.We are living in a competitive world. Do the children of police men get an equal opportunity to compete with the others?That's what we are giving. In Thane I built a school investing 6-7 crores of rupees; 1400 children are getting the best education there. It is as good as the Singhania School of Thane.

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Our Rs 18 crore school project is also coming up. It is being executed by the Goenka Educational Trust. It will be as good as any best school in Mumbai. It will accommodate 6,420 children and half of them will be from the police families. It will provide the best English-medium education to children right from the pre-nursery level to the 12th standard. I am sure it will be welcomed by the people.What's your message to the educated youth to motivate them into joining the police force at various levels - from IPS down to the level of the constable?We need good police people so the people do not go on the wrong path. So the IPS officers have got to be the best of the lot. Most of the IPS officers are from IIMs, IITs and are graduates or post graduates. No doubt, the IAS and IPS cadres attract the best talent. But we need good policemen at all other levels. The constables, the sub-inspectors and others. It's a great challenging job to directly help somebody and wipe the tear of a poor man or woman. If you want to work and make the society strong and fight on behalf of the person who cannot on his own fight because of inequalities, this is the service. I enjoyed being here for 34 years. Given a chance, I will start allover again and work for another 34 years as a police officer. I have enjoyed my job by helping people. Ask anybody and they will say, Sivanandhan has helped me in one way or the other. It is matter of service. That is why, it is called the Indian Police Service, not the Indian police job.So I appeal to the youngsters, who have got moral fibre in them to come and join the police service to fight against the evils rather than stay away and be a witness to what is happening.I am definitely happy and proud about the opportunities that I have enjoyed. My job, my career, has been one of the best in the country. I served for six years in the Crime Branch, three years in the CBI, six years in the IB, and six years as Commissioner of Police in Nagpur, Thane and Mumbai, what else can you ask for?

     NextA Ganesh Nadar joins Mumbaikars as they resolve to stand up against terror.

On the eve of the second anniversary of the Mumbai terror attacks, three city non-governmental organisations paid tribute to those who lost their lives in the 26/11 carnage.

The NGOs -- I Love Mumbai, PRISM and Stand Up and Act -- paid tributes to the departed at the Gandhi garden near Mantralaya in south Mumbai.

Present at the event, themed One Step ahead, were Bollywood stars Abhishek Bachchan and Sonakshi Sinha. With Abhishek were members of the cast of his film Khelenge Hum Jee Jaan Se.

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Home > City news > Education with entertainment

Education with entertainmentTuesday, January 25, 2011By Shwetha Kannan

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NGO, fire brigade to teach South Mumbaikars how to deal with crisis

When it comes to managing disaster and untoward incidents like terrorist attacks and so on, residents of SoBo need to pull up their socks. According to a survey conducted by Prism - Stand up and Act!, an NGO that works in the field of social issues, revealed that the South Mumbaikars need more lessons when it comes civil security.

Showcasing the result of the survey which was conducted in October 2010 for a period of 15 days, on a sample of 1,000 people from the areas in and around South Mumbai, Anand P. Waindeshkar, Founder & Vice-president, Prism, said, “Out of the total number of people surveyed, almost 50 per cent were unaware of the 20-hour helpline started by the Mumbai Police under the Jagrut Mumbaikar Campaign, while only 50 people of the total 1,000 surveyed knew how to use a fire extinguisher.”

The surveyed sample comprised a mix of college students, professionals, housewives, representatives of various housing societies and security guards of these societies to name a few who were all within the age group 18 to 45.

Taking cognisance of this matter, Prism is now planning to launch ‘One Step Ahead’ in March from Cuffe Parade to Worli, and the campaign will be on for a period six months.

“Starting this March, an event lasting for one and a half hour would be held on the last Sunday of every month in an auditorium, preferably a college auditorium because of its visibility, wherein there would be a presentation made by the Jagrut Mumbaikar

Team of Mumbai Police, a street play by the Fire Brigade in collaboration with the Abhay Abhinav Trust, and a self-defence workshop by the Marshall Arts Academy. Though our audience would include specially invited representatives of from various housing societies, corporate parks and colleges, however, all those who want to be part of this are welcomed. Colleges like Jai Hind, K.C. College, Bhavan’s, St. Xavier’s, and Sophia are some of the shortlisted venues,” said Siddhi Vartak, Founder and President, Prism.

“We will be starting with South Mumbai area, but in the second leg, we would be targeting suburbs extreme and interiors of the city,” said Anand.Commenting on their participation in the campaign Uday Tatkare, Fire Chief, BMC, said “You can expect 100 per cent commitment from our side. When the NGO is striving so hard, we’ll make sure that they get all the possible help from our side.

During street plays, we would be teaching people how to react and deal with different scenarios like short circuit, fire, earthquake, gas leak, etc. We would be informing them about all the ‘dos and donts’. It is education with entertainment.”

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A total of fifteen staffers from the fire brigade, including their children would be a part of the street play.  

Express News Service Tags : police Posted: Tue Sep 07 2010, 04:37 hrs Mumbai: Discount Shopping

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The Mumbai Polices Jagrut Mumbaikar campaign, aimed at creating aware and alert citizens, was relaunched on Monday with actor Ajay Devgn as its brand ambassador. Police Commissioner Sanjeev Dayal on Monday flagged off the campaign in the presence of the actor at a function in Mumbai Police Gymkhana, Marine Drive.

The campaign is a joint venture by the Mumbai Police and Eureka Forbes.

“The campaign will be spearheaded and implemented by a 12-member squad led by an assistant commissioner,” said Dayal.

Actor Ajay Devgn, who is featured prominently in the campaign’s pamphlets, said, “Mumbai is one of the safest cities in India and that is a result of the efforts taken by the Mumbai Police. However, to make it the safest city in the world, the citizens need to join hands and become aware of the threats. They should help police effectively to ensure our safety. This campaign will not only make them aware of what they are expected to do, but remind them of the same also,” he said.

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The Jagrut Mumbaikar campaign was started in March 2008 and 80 residential societies, 68 colleges and 113 schools have been part of it.

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Page 9: Jagrut Mum

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The Protector

Issue: Sep-Oct 2009

  INITIATIVE    

Police Initiatives Put People on Perpetual‘Alert Mode’Mumbai police believes in being pro-active than wait for an incident to occur and respond to it. Various initiatives launched by the Mumbai Police are part of the proactive philosophy. These range from traditional Area (Mohalla) Peace Committees to the ambitious 'Jagrut Mumbaikar' project to cover hundreds of housing societies to sensitize their residents to the constantly looming threat perception. The response, according to Additional Commissioner of Police (Security) Vinay Kargoankar, has been very encouraging. Following are excerpts from an interview with him.

What are the various ongoing initiatives that Mumbai Police has taken to make the citizens aware of their role in ensuring their own safety and security? The two initiatives that the Mumbai Police have undertaken so far are Alert Mumbaikar and Jagrut Mumbaikar. Alert Mumbaikar focused on the fact that although Mumbaikars were aware that there was and is a threat perception to Mumbai, most were not alert to their environment and changes happening around them. Information branding was put up at 156,000 touch points across Mumbai and workshops were carried out in 126 colleges in the city. Students interacted with Police personnel and had presentations and discussions on relevant topics. Jagrut Mumbaikar was planned to as an even bigger programme and the platform of housing societies was chosen so as to give a greater exposure to the citizens on all aspects of security, from terror issues to disaster problems. This programme was started in March this year is still ongoing.

What has been the progress of the initiative Jagrut Mumbaikar and the public's response to it? The campaign is still going on and we have successfully completed the session in more than 40 societies. As police personnel are interacting with citizens at their societies, there has been a very large

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turnout at every session and we have seen very active participation from the people. They have accepted the programme in a very positive manner and the participation has been more than satisfactory.

We understand that Jagrut Mumbaikar is a time-bound initiative and meant to run just for a year. Will you be able to cover the entire city within this limited period? Mumbai is a huge and vast city and we are attempting to achieve the maximum number of societies within the given time frame. Although the campaign has been planned for a year initially, depending on the success achieved, we will plan further. In the first year, we intend to cover over 200 societies in Mumbai.

You have also launched an initiative called Alert Mumbaikar with actor Shahid Kapoor as the promo poster boy. What has been the response from the people? Alert Mumbaikar was planned with college students in mind as a study showed that students were more aware to changes around them. Hence, Shahid Kapoor was selected as the connect with the youth. The recall value of the campaign, when surveyed post the activity, was 63 percent. This is a very satisfactory result.

There is another significant initiative called Elderline. Are senior citizens of the city taking advantage of it? Yes, 103 is a special number to be used by senior citizens and we have specially trained personnel manning these lines. It is being regularly used by senior citizens. In addition to this special phone number, periodic checks are done by local police stations on being informed about the addresses of senior citizens by the 103 personnel.

How do you intend to make Area (mohalla) Peace Committees more effective? And have you been monitoring all the initiatives you have launched and what has been their impact on city's overall security scenario? We have been monitoring all the initiatives launched by us. It has certainly helped in improving security scenario in the city. We are getting very positive feedback from all segments of the society. Response from the citizens has certainly improved.

Idea Cellular has launched a 24-hour Idea Safe Mumbai Helpline in addition to the existing police helplines. How good is the response? Calls made to the Idea helpline have been diverted to 100 and 1090 and the helpline is being effectively used by citizens.

Are you thinking of using the all-pervading Mobile Phone as an effective platform to spread the Mumbai Police message on security? A simple musical jingle can do wonders. We are sure every phone company would love to be associated with you in this venture. Have you thought about it? Yes, it is being discussed and we would be in a position to take a decision on the same shortly.

Similarly, have you thought about using FM Radio as a popular communication prop?

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Yes, use of FM Radio too is being examined currently and we would soon be taking a decision on this too shortly.

Vinay KargaonkarMumbai police today relaunched the 'Jagrut (alert) Mumbaikar' Campaign, following the success of a similar campaign earlier, to enable people be alert on any kind of anti-national or criminal activities.

Addressing mediapersons here, Commissioner of Police, Mumbai Sanjeev Payal said Mumbaikars need to be more alert and should immediately bring to notice of the police, if they find any criminal activity taking place in and around their vicinity.

Mumbai police is always ready to provide all necessary support to the residents, he said. ''We have crafted a special scheme to provide security to places such as 'Lalbaugcha Raja', which sees tremendous worshippers during Ganesh chaturthi. Also, special arrangements have been made in view of the ensuing Ramzan Eid and the Mount Mary Fair,'' Mr Dayal informed. Brand Ambassador of the Jagrut Mumbai campaign, Ajay Devgan said ''our city is one of the safest in the country but to make it the safest city in the entire world, there is a need for people to help the local police, by providing information about any kind of anti-national activities''.

Mumbai police relaunches Alert Mumbaikar campaignMumbai | Monday, Sep 6 2010 IST

Initiative to spread awareness on security issues launchedExpress News Service Tags : mumbai, security awareness Posted: Wed Mar 04 2009, 01:40 hrs Mumbai: Discount Shopping

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In a bid to sensitise Mumbaikars on security issues, the Mumbai police, Mumbai Fire Brigade and Eureka Forbes have joined hands to start ‘Jagrut Mumbaikar’ a year-long initiative that will mobilise people to ‘be secure for sure’.

The police and the fire brigade officials with the assistance of Eureka Forbes personnel will visit residential complexes and spread awareness about how alertness among the people can help curb terrorism, counter crime and control domestic accidents.

The initiative comprising a website, a toll free number and an SMS service was launched at the

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Police Gymkhana on Tuesday evening.

“Through Jagrut Mumbaikar we want to establish a one-to-one relationship with the people and inform them about certain basic facets of outdoor security, indoor security and the ‘what to dos’ to be employed during emergency situations. Outdoor security would cover topics like how the people should keep a lookout for unclaimed or abandoned objects or vehicles and immediately inform the police,” said Police Commissioner Hasan Gafoor speaking at the launch of the initiative.

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“Indoor security would be about cyber safety, registration of servants among other things. The initiative will also inform the people about safety during calamities,” he added.

Fire Brigade Chief P D Kargupikkar said that his team of officials would be educating the residents about emergency preparedness, prevention of accidents, prevention and management of disasters and spread awareness to facilitate better management and control.

“The number of disaster-related phone calls to us has been increasing every year. Through this initiative we plan to reduce the number of household disasters that take place. For example, in highrises the stairway is rarely used but if it is not maintained properly, during a fire or a blackout, evacuation will become difficult,” said Kargupikkar.

Explaining the role of Eureka Forbes in the initiative S L Goklaney, Vice Chairman and MD Eureka Forbes said that the company’s vast network would help the message reach several homes across the city.

CEO, Direct Sales, Marzin Shroff said, “We will be targeting those societies which have over 100 flats for the simple reason that we would be able to interact with a larger number of people. At present over 500 Eureka employees have been interacting with over 250 societies. We will be informing those societies about Jagrut Mumbaikar and after briefing them the police and fire brigade officials will interact with them through an hour-long presentation,” said Shroff.

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Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), meant to protect the state and its capital from terrorist attacks, is running at just 30 per cent of its sanctioned capacity. Raised in 2004, the squad has just 290 officers and men against a sanctioned strength of 935 personnel. Critical wings such as analysis, technical information and research are understaffed, seriously impeding its capacity to respond to a terror threat.

Their task is manpower intensive-ATS officials say they need to travel extensively and shadow their suspects. Since they are short-staffed, it takes longer to investigate cases. The ATS trailed Pune's German Bakery blast accused Mirza Himayat Baig for more than three months. They could not trace his mentors because all their energy was focused on capturing Baig in September, nearly seven months after the blast. The cell lacks specialised equipment to test voice samples and study faces from CCTV footage. The ATS embarrassed itself by arresting Abdul Samad because he resembles his older brother Yaseen Bhatkal who was caught on CCTV keeping a bag under a table at the German Bakery.

Worse, the police force is slackening on its mandatory firing practice. Just 10 policemen can be seen at the Ghatkopar police firing range every day honing their shooting skills. This is a steep drop from nearly 80 policemen who practiced each day in the aftermath of the 26/11, firing 10 rounds each. The shrinkage is attributed to a combination of indifference and fatigue from long working hours.

The dwindling numbers at firing practice comes despite the conclusive findings of a two-member committee report headed by former Union home secretary Ram Pradhan that studied the 26/11 attacks, saying the police's offensive capability had been seriously affected. Policemen hadn't fired in over a year because of lack of ammunition. At CST station, their

antiquated weapons jammed from disuse-one policeman even flung a chair at an AK-47 wielding terrorist.

ATS officers with German Bakery blast accused Mirza Himayat BaigThe drop in numbers at firing practice prompted Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjeev Dayal to issue notices in August to all 90 police stations across the city as well as other branches like the crime branch, asking policemen to ensure that they do the requisite 20-minute firing practice every year at least.

Mumbai Police Wishlist:

Procurement of state-of-the-art weapons: Pending

Purchase of good quality bulletproof jackets: Pending

Installation of 5,000 CCTV cameras: Pending

Upgradation of ATS: Pending Weekly review of internal

security: Done Creation of Force One: Done

Page 15: Jagrut Mum

The commissioner's plea has fallen on deaf ears as has the scathing indictment of the police force by the Pradhan Committee. Even two years after the deadly attacks that left 166 persons dead, the Maharashtra Government is more interested in superficial changes - the colour of the police uniform to blue - rather than modernisation. Its Jagrut Mumbaikar terrorism awareness campaign remains confined to advertisements in local trains featuring brand ambassador actor Ajay Devgn.

Maharashtra DGP D. Sivanandan says that there is a heightened sense of security and the operational preparedness of the police has improved. The state government has spent Rs 90 crore of a Rs 630-crore modernisation plan on training and equipping its Force One commandos created along the lines of the National Security Guard (NSG) and purchasing bulletproof vehicles for Quick Response Teams (QRT). Two years later, the police are still buying equipment. Consignments of 3,000 AK-47s from the Centre and 5,000 weapons from Israel and 2,775 bulletproof jackets from the Union Home Ministry will arrive only by the year-end.

Kiran Tare  | November 27, 2010 | Updated 00:00 IST

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Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), meant to protect the state and its capital from terrorist attacks, is running at just 30 per cent of its sanctioned capacity. Raised in 2004, the squad has just 290 officers and men against a sanctioned strength of 935 personnel. Critical wings such as analysis, technical information and research are understaffed, seriously impeding its capacity to respond to a terror threat.

Their task is manpower intensive-ATS officials say they need to travel extensively and shadow their suspects. Since they are short-staffed, it takes longer to investigate cases. The ATS trailed Pune's German Bakery blast accused Mirza Himayat Baig for more than three months. They could not trace his mentors because all their energy was focused on capturing Baig in September, nearly seven months after the blast. The cell lacks specialised equipment to test voice samples and study faces from CCTV footage. The ATS embarrassed itself by arresting Abdul Samad because he resembles his older brother Yaseen Bhatkal who was caught on

Mumbai Police Wishlist:

Procurement of state-of-the-art weapons: Pending

Purchase of good quality bulletproof jackets: Pending

Installation of 5,000 CCTV cameras: Pending

Upgradation of ATS: Pending Weekly review of internal

security: Done Creation of Force One: Done

Page 16: Jagrut Mum

CCTV keeping a bag under a table at the German Bakery.

Worse, the police force is slackening on its mandatory firing practice. Just 10 policemen can be seen at the Ghatkopar police firing range every day honing their shooting skills. This is a steep drop from nearly 80 policemen who practiced each day in the aftermath of the 26/11, firing 10 rounds each. The shrinkage is attributed to a combination of indifference and fatigue from long working hours.

The dwindling numbers at firing practice comes despite the conclusive findings of a two-member committee report headed by former Union home secretary Ram Pradhan that studied the 26/11 attacks, saying the police's offensive capability had been seriously affected. Policemen hadn't fired in over a year because of lack of ammunition. At CST station, their antiquated weapons jammed from disuse-one policeman even flung a chair at an AK-47 wielding terrorist.

ATS officers with German Bakery blast accused Mirza Himayat BaigThe drop in numbers at firing practice prompted Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjeev Dayal to issue notices in August to all 90 police stations across the city as well as other branches like the crime branch, asking policemen to ensure that they do the requisite 20-minute firing practice every year at least.

The commissioner's plea has fallen on deaf ears as has the scathing indictment of the police force by the Pradhan Committee. Even two years after the deadly attacks that left 166 persons dead, the Maharashtra

Government is more interested in superficial changes - the colour of the police uniform to blue - rather than modernisation. Its Jagrut Mumbaikar terrorism awareness campaign remains confined to advertisements in local trains featuring brand ambassador actor Ajay Devgn.

Maharashtra DGP D. Sivanandan says that there is a heightened sense of security and the operational preparedness of the police has improved. The state government has spent Rs 90 crore of a Rs 630-crore modernisation plan on training and equipping its Force One commandos created along the lines of the National Security Guard (NSG) and purchasing bulletproof vehicles for Quick Response Teams (QRT). Two years later, the police are still buying equipment. Consignments of 3,000 AK-47s from the Centre and 5,000 weapons from Israel and 2,775 bulletproof jackets from the Union Home Ministry will arrive only by the year-end.

A plan to purchase three robots and one Total Containment Vessel (TCV) for detecting and defusing bombs remains in suspended animation nearly three years after it was proposed. Dusted out and hastily cleared by the home department in three months after the 26/11 attacks, the proposal calls for purchasing three robots to detect and defuse bombs and the TCV for safe detonation of up to eight kg RDX. The process of inviting bids has been initiated but Home Department officials are clueless on when they will arrive.

Former Maharashtra DGP S.S. Virk emphasises the technological upgradation of the police force. "They have to be alert 24x7. They need firing practice in day, night, monsoon, winter and

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summer. The police have to dispose off the terrorist in one minute. But for that one minute they have to be prepared 24 hours a day," he says. Two indigenous bulletproof boats acquired from the Goa shipyard at a cost of around Rs 4.5 crore are simply inadequate to patrol a long city coastline. There is no word on when the 12 patrol boats purchased for Rs 90 crore will arrive. The state Government's Rs 157-crore Big Brother plan to wrap Mumbai in 5,000 CCTV cameras remains in limbo. To be installed at 480 traffic junctions, the CCTV network would have motion detection, bio-matrix, optical character recognition for screening number plates of the vehicles, night vision, thermal imaging and pan, tilt and zoom capabilities. They would also monitor important government installations and buildings, railway stations, bus depots and beaches. Nothing has been done except screening of number plates of vehicles.

IPS officer-turned-lawyer Y.P. Singh stresses the primacy of intelligence. "Bulletproof jackets and firing practice are important when an attack takes place. Intelligence is important in pre-empting it." An important recommendation of the Pradhan Committee was that the Principal Secretary Home (Law and order) be designated as the nodal officer to receive and act on all intelligence alerts has not been acted upon. Presently all intelligence alerts are mechanically forwarded to operational units either by DGP's office, the ATS or Home Department. The confusion in the processing of intelligence alerts at the state government continues. A Rs 3.31-crore modernisation of the control rooms has been underway for the past six months.

A dietary cost-cutting exercise by the Home Department has brought down the efficiency of nearly 150 sniffer dogs in the state. Twelve sniffer dogs were admitted to the veterinary hospital in Parel after they were unable to stomach the Government's cost-cutting drive. Their non-vegetarian diet has been replaced by 250 gm tablets made up of green vegetables, beetroot and maize twice a day in an attempt to halve their feeding costs. If another attack does come, man's best friends could well be the first in a series of easy targets.