Security personnel are people who stake their lives to save our lives. So, the least we can do is to provide them the best of equipment and gear to protect themselves while they protect us.

What did we find during the Mumbai terror attacks? That the policemen were still struggling with single shot tom guns to protect themselves and the people while the terrorists arrived with state of art automatic weapons and hand grenades?

The fact that most of the policemen are still armed with single shot guns to protect themselves and the people while the VIPs have carbine toting commandos to ensure their safety and security. I wonder how the VIPs would have felt if their security personnel had single shot tom guns and the people of India had carbine toting commandos to protect them!

It is wide divide. There is no reason why Indians should take this lying down. If the government wants to collect taxes and other levies from us, it had better give us something in return. We cannot have security for VIPs and insecurity for us and our security forces. If they need the security, they had better provide security for us. So, cut down on all unnecessary expenses and also some necessary expenses if needed and get our security personnel the best equipment and gear at par with the best in the world.

Can you believe it…the men who went after the terrorists were wearing bullet proof vests that were not really bullet proof? Now, how can we do this to our security personnel? Are we a nation without any conscience? The people who purchased those bullet proof vests and the people who cleared them should not go unpunished. We cannot have a clearer case of corruption. We cannot allow corruption to play with the security of our security personnel. That is one thing for sure.

If that is not enough, the crack commando force, the National Security Guards, which is supposed to deal with terrorist attacks and hijacks, did not have a dedicated transport plane to move the force. They did not have a helicopter of their own. Now, isn’t that shoddy on the part of the people who manage the security of our country? The Mumbai terror attack has at least set them thinking on these lines.

Also, let us not ignore the fact that our security forces need some protection from our media when they are on specialist missions. Let there be no compromises on that. Reporting must stop where the security of our security personnel comes in. Let there be no ifs and buts about it.

There is one more thing I would like to comment upon. Let us educate our politicians to be more sensible and respect the sentiments of our security personnel and their families at least after they have laid down their lives for our motherland. What Kerala chief minister did in Bangalore and the Gujarat chief minister did Mumbai tantamount to national embarassment. If the family does not like to have politicians around, let them at least show some sensibility and learn to respect their sentiments.

Let us not stop here. Let us find out where else we are insensitive towards our security forces and let us do something about it earnestly. Let us give our security personnel their due.