1. Yesterday (Friday the 25th July) a series of bomb blasts shook Bangalore out of it's stupor. Eight low intensity Improvised Explosive Devices went off between 1.15 PM to 1.45 PM at different parts of the city. I got a call from one of our senior officers at around 2.00 PM asking me to verify this news. I got in touch with the Police authorities who confirmed the news but were reluctant/unable to give the details. Soon afterwards there was near pandemonium in the office as people started getting various distorted versions of the incident(s) from friends, family members and anxious well-wishers. A lot of members of the staff approached me with such stories. Everyone was glued to the telephone/cellphone and the common refrain was that they wanted to go home.
2. Having verified the facts (as much was possible) an announcement was made over the PA system informing everyone that there was no need to panic and due measures were being taken to step up the security measures in the office as well as the residential colonies. This had the desired effect and folks settled down in their respective work areas in due course. At one point of time even the telephone lines got jammed and no communication was possible. All the armed guard posts were doubled, the wicket gate locked and vigil stepped up in addition to the usual access controls. Besides taking some other precautions, demonstrative tightening of measures was achieved by having the armed guards patrol the premises and the outer periphery of the Bank. I got a call at 6.00 PM that there was another blast near Mysore Road (such was the extent of misinformation). The picture only became clear at night when all the news channels got their act together.
3. Today morning we heard that a bomb had been detected near a shopping mall and had been defused by the BDS. This was the 9th bomb which was fortunately detected and defused before it could go off. Then in the evening we heard that there were eight bomb blasts in Ahmedabad and that many people had been killed/injured. These were also low intensity blasts but happened in crowded places. Four theories are doing the rounds regarding the Bangalore bomb blasts. The first is that this was the handiwork of terrorists/jehadi outfits. The second that it was a retaliatory action in connection with the desecration of a mosque two weeks ago by some local elements. The third theory was that these blasts were somehow politically motivated and the fourth that these blasts were a dry run for something bigger in the offing.
4. Finding the reason behind these blasts is not as important as creating an atmosphere of security in the minds of the public at large at this point of time. Awareness campaigns, intensive patrolling by security forces (both public and private), stepping up of security measures at entry/exit points, strengthening of security at vital installations, surveillance and under cover operations by the state police and intelligence authorities will go a long way in containing this menace. There is an urgent need to develop a 'security culture' in the general public so as to thwart the evil designs of perpetrators of such activities.