Post-Mumbai attack: Praise
for armed forces from across India
By
Ritu Sharma
New
Delhi, Dec 19 (IANS) The grit and gumption exhibited by the
armed forces during 'Operation Black Tornado' to wrest Mumbai
from terrorists last month has made them shine brighter in
the eys of all Indians, with letters of praise pouring in
from across the country.
"I
am an ordinary citizen of India. I salute you and the entire
force for the bravery with which you protect us day and night.
I pray to God for your long life. I shall be forever indebted
to all of them," Anand Bhangle wrote in a postcard to
the defence ministry from Goregaon, Mumbai.
Ten
terrorists had virtually held the financial and entertainment
capital of the country to ransom by attacking people in 10
spots, including two luxury hotels and a Jewish centre. The
special forces of the army and navy backed by the air force
launched an operation to "smoke out" the terrorists
holed up in these places.
Over
170 people, including 14 policemen and two National Security
Guard (NSG) commandos, lost their lives.
Some
of the writers expressed their anger against the government
for keeping the armed forces inadequately equipped.
Kaustubh
V. Taishete from Malad in Mumbai wrote: "Due to the shameful
act by the terrorist and high negligence of the Indian government,
several policemen, NSG (National Security Guard) commandos
and many other people died unknowingly. This is only due to
inadequate support to our armed forces in terms of bullet-proof
jackets, advanced arms and ammunition, etc."
Many
acquisition plans by the armed forces are running behind schedule.
Recently, the armed forces have also gone public with their
dissent because they were getting paid less than bureaucrats
at similar seniority levels.
Another
writer who only identified himself as "M" wrote
in a postcard: "We must thank the commandos who had done
an honourable work on Nov 26th and rescued the people in trouble.
Vande Mataram!"
Tirthaveera
Sathe from Delhi wrote: "Bhartiya sainya dalon - hardik
shubhkamnayein, Pakistan ka vinash ho har bhartiya ki yahi
manokamna. Vande Mataram! (Heartfelt gratitude to the armed
forces. We wish for the destruction of Pakistan.)"
A
defence ministry official said the Mumbai rescue operation
by the commandos of the NSG and the navy - beamed live on
television - may have rekindled people's attraction towards
the forces.
He
hoped it would help alleviate the acute manpower shortage
being faced by the armed forces now.
(Ritu
Sharma can be contacted at ritu.s@ians.in)
Indo-Asian
News Service
Prabuddha
Bharata>>>
Vedanta
Kesari>>>
Vedanta
Mass Media>>>
|