Current Affairs questions and answers

A friend of my spouse, a lawyer hs been killed in the ambush. We are unable to console the family of small children to bear the loss. I can only imagine how hundreds of families are compelled to bear the sudden loss of their near and dear ones.

But it was shocking to note that 24 hour news channels were providing live coverage of the events and at times they went too far repeating the events again and again. They should practice restraint in such cases and avoid playing with the emotions of the public.

It will definitely affect the diplomatic relations with Pakistan as there are unconfirmed speculation of Pakistani militants' involvement. India has to necessarily take up with Pakistan for a solution.

The government role has been very slippery.

1. It has failed to act on prior intelligence as usual.

2. Army Cammandos should have been provided sphisticated rifles for long range shooting and equipments to save the refugees from top floors. The primitive ladders used to bring down women and old people were shocking.

3. Army has done a good job no doubt, but resignation of ministers is irresponsible. They should have stayed back to solve the issue.

The government should 1. develop better intelligence for prior detection of such crimes

2. Get the specialists trained in international agencies

3. Develop disaster management squads

4. provide them with latest equipments and safety armour

5. Deploy helicopter to handle situation

6. Install security implements in big buildings

7. Take the issue with Pakistan in the presence of G8 nations for solution and catching the culprits

8. Act beyond party affiliation and selflessly.

9. Remove the security system of politicians for redeploymnet in crucial installations

10 Create stringent scurity measures in heritage monuments and buildings

11. Seal the borders with more care and enhance vigilance

12. Seal Pkistan borders for more security.

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The latest assault in Mumbai has brought fresh tensions to fragile India-Pakistan relations at a time when the Pakistani government had made unprecedented friendly overtures toward its traditional rival. The attacks -- which at latest count claimed more than 185 lives, while injuring over three hundred -- took place just three days after Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari proposed a "no first nuclear strike" policy with India.Pakistan's government, among the first to condemn the attacks, denied accusations of responsibility and extended its cooperation, even agreeing initially to send the head of the ISI to India to assist the investigations. Pakistan has since reversed this decision, agreeing to send a senior ISI official on the trip instead. If reports of the Mumbai attackers' Pakistani origins and training are confirmed, it would not only threaten the significant steps that India and Pakistan have taken toward peace. It would also diminish international confidence in the ability of Pakistan's eight-month-old democratically elected government to confront terrorism more effectively. That at a time when Pakistan is desperate for international support, with its economy in ruins and its internal security situation fragile. If the world suspects Pakistan's authorities are unable to deliver in the battle against terrorism, international assistance may be hard to come. Already, patience with Islamabad has been running out for some time now in Washington. American troop casualties in Afghanistan continue to rise, leading the U.S. to complain that a recently launched Pakistani offensive in some of the semi-autonomous tribal areas along the Afghan border is not enough. Reports that the Mumbai assailants specifically asked for British and American passports, and targeted Jewish families, is another reason, analysts say, to believe this was not just an attack on India. Pakistan has recently made several moves to reform ISI's reputation, in part to distance itself from the recurring accusations of supporting terrorism. The army chief replaced the ISI head in September, after Indian and U.S. officials linked the ISI to the July 2008 bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul. Last week, Pakistan's foreign minister said that the political arm of the spy agency, which has historically interfered in domestic politics and worked to destabilize Pakistani governments, had been disbanded. But it is still too early to tell if these moves will increase ISI's accountability to the elected government, or bring any major policy changes to an agency that has long interfered in the country's foreign policy.

One thing is clear: if the Mumbai attacks are linked to Pakistan, it will not only be a huge setback in the normalization of the two countries' relations, it will also make it much more difficult to put an end to the war in Afghanistan and bring stability to South Asia. The incoming Obama administration has been calling for a more regional approach to both problems, one that involves Indian participation and seeks to resolve the bitter Kashmir dispute. But if the latest turn of events leads to renewed tensions between India and Pakistan, the tough balancing act President-elect Obama must perform in the region will only get tougher. Delhi initially distinguished between terrorist groups in Pakistan and the Pakistani authorities as such, but that distinction is getting blurred. Islamabad stubbornly rejects imputations of involvement. Reflexes are hardening on both sides.

In the competitive environment of domestic politics as India heads for general elections in the next six months, it will be suicidal for the ruling party to be seen as compromising on terrorism. The Indian interior minister has been forced to quit, accepting political responsibility for security failings. India is now contemplating measures aimed at freezing its "composite dialogue" with Pakistan.

Delhi feels exasperated that it has friendly relations with the Pakistani civilian leadership but lacks any communication with the army top brass, which ultimately calls the shots in Islamabad. A potential crisis in India-Pakistan relations is brewing.

The United States has said it is "duty-bound" to offer assistance to India in the investigative process, but New Delhi also expects Washington to pressure Pakistan. It will be the last major foreign policy act for the departing Bush administration and a curious dress rehearsal for the incoming Barack Obama presidency. The prime task will be to cool tempers and avoid an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation between the two South Asian nuclear adversaries. But the ramifications are much wider for the U.S. than in any previous India-Pakistan confrontations it mediated. For the first time, U.S. interests are directly on the firing line. The repercussions for the "war on terror" in Afghanistan are at once obvious.

If India-Pakistani tensions escalate in the coming days, the U.S. will be hard-pressed to stop any Pakistani decision to divert its crack divisions from the Afghan border regions to its western border with India. Almost immediately, the impact will be felt on the war in Afghanistan. The Pakistani interest lies in forcing a mediation role on the U.S. in the hopes of "restraining" India. Pakistan feels nervous about the rapidly expanding U.S.-India strategic partnership, and would like Washington to be even-handed in its South Asia policies.

Curiously, the attack on Mumbai underscores Pakistan's claim that Washington cannot compartmentalize the Afghan war without addressing the core issues of India-Pakistan tension. But that is easier said than done. If Washington proceeds to wade into the "core issue" of Kashmir, that may satisfy the Pakistani military, but it will surely annoy India and may even rock the foundations of the U.S.-India strategic understanding. I personally feel that considering the changing equations with these attacks the Indian Government should continue pressurizing the US as well as maintaining a hard stand. However, increasing its internal security measures should be of prime importance and an immediate step.

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What has Shivsena done for mumbai in last 42 years? NOTHING. Shivsena is now barking after 7 days from Mumbai terror that they will not allow any pakistani to schedule his program in Mumbai & Maharashtra.

Really shivsena & MNS are barking Dogs, who will never Bite. They will only scream on top of their voices & will never do any favour to the nation.

You can see the mumbaikars views regarding shivsena & mns on http://sify.com/news/messageboard/m…

These politicians will do nothing. They only want the votes & they will not visit the places again for 5 years.

Now its high time, look people are not fools we have to show these insensative and autocratic politicians that they are kings of banana republic and they have to change their thinking and work for the public otherwise we can throw them out .

Why is "Z Security" given for ministers, it should be taken off. It is we due to whom these ministers are enjoying in their pretty air conditioned luxury homes.

What type of ammunitions do our police have. One pistol & a gun for the constables which can only fire till 10 metre.

How can our police mens fight with these single bullet guns in front of AK56 or AK 57 gun machines. The 5Kg bullet proofs jackets were tested in the year 2004 & were termed as "useless" as the bullets were passing through it. Many police mens made several complaints stating that these jackets are useless. But our Indian Govt. was sleeping.

One thing I dont understand, what was our Navy doing when these terrorist activities were taking place from last 6 months on the border costal areas. The terror attacks were intended to carry out maximum deaths, especially of foreigners, and to create an international sensation. They were instructed to open fire indiscriminately in the targeted public places.

MUMBAI HAS LOST MORE THAN 4000 CRORE RUPEES IN 59HRS. Why we have lost so much amount & lives. Due to negligence of Navy???.

See the newspapers of western countries especially "The wall street Journal" (wsj.com). It has clearly stated that," India's Main Opposition Party Pitches Blame for Attacks as Election Issue". The paper has straight away expressed that the indian politicians are blaming each other for the terrorist attacks & are demanding resignations. If the Indian politicians are fighting with eachother for the seats by blaming each other, then how can India firght with terrorism.

Its high time now, Mumbai will not tollerate these politicians. We have lost many people here. BUT WHO CARES. The politicians are seem to be smilling when they visit Taj & Oberoi for inspection. This is our government.

In the Taj terror attack, 4 MLA's were stucked up, but they are safe. Why did the terrorist didnt attacked them?

Why India is trying to shake hands with pakistan? Do shake hands, but before that destroy the terrorist training organisations in pakistan.

ITS VERY SHAMELESS. WE CANT KEEP FAITH ON THESE POLITICIANS & REALLY MUMBAI IS UNDER GREAT FEAR. WE OURSELF DOES NOT KNOW, WHEN WILL WE DIE ON WHICH TURNING DUE TO TERRORISM.

"DONT WORRY ABOUT THOSE WHO CAME THROUGH BOATS. ... OUR FORCES CAN DEFEAT THEM, BUT DO WORRY ABOUT THOSE WHO COME THROUGH VOTES.

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It was very disturbing to see on TV what was happening in Mumbai. I have had my relatives stay in two of hotels in the past that were attacked. So all of this really hits you.

These attacks in Mumbai will bring about changes in India. Some have already begun. The article below is from BusinessWeek that relate to some of the changes coming:

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh mooted the possibility of creating a federal agency to handle anti-terror responsibilities. “These attacks, probably with external linkages were designed to cause panic by choosing high profile targets,” said Singh in a statement to the nation. “We are not prepared to countenance a situation where the safety and security of our citizens is violated with impunity.” Without naming Pakistan, he said India would not tolerate the fact that neighboring countries were involved in these attacks. A previously unknown group, the Deccan Mujahideen took credit for the attacks in an email to local papers.

As Singh was on television, one of the terrorists who laid siege on Nariman House, down the road from the Taj and home to several Israelis and other Jews, was also speaking to a local Hindi channel. Imran Babbar, 25, who claimed he had worked with a multinational company, was in one of the apartments in Nariman House with five hostages. He said he wanted “the mujahideen held in India released, and only then will we release the people”.

The attacks come at a pivotal time. Local elections are ongoing in several Indian states, and in April the ruling Congress Party-led coalition government will contest general elections under intense criticism for its failure to stem terrorism and counter an economic slump that has seen inflation rage past 12%, industrial activity slump to half its normal rate and the once red-hot stock markets dropping to multi-year lows. Minister for Commerce and Industry, Kamal Nath, told Reuters that the attacks would not affect India’s economic growth. “This does not have an economic component,” said Nath. “(There will be) no slowdown in investment flows.”

But Mumbai’s stock exchange, which is close to the area of the attacks, was closed Thursday, and the Reserve Bank of India closed all trading in commodities, bonds and foreign exchange markets. If the stock exchange opens on Friday, it will likely see a significant fall, said brokers and analysts. That would repeat a historical pattern that is all too familiar in India, which has seen the most terrorist attacks of any nation other than Iraq, according to data collected by a private security think-tank.

The Mumbai attacks appear to be the one of the best orchestrated terrorist acts in recent times. Police sources suspect the terrorists were dropped by a large fishing trawler mid sea after sundown; they then sailed in a small fishing boat to reach the Gateway of India opposite the Taj. The boat was loaded with ammunition, and police sources said that they had found 8 kilograms of RDX explosives and hand grenades in the vicinity of the Taj. A naval ship, along with choppers and a coast guard vessel, has begun a search for the terrorists’ trawler.

Many city residents are angry about the easy entry of the terrorists into Mumbai. “The navy should be ashamed. A terrorist vehicle sails past their territory, and they don’t even know,” says the managing director of a leading American private equity company who was dining with some prospective clients at a restaurant near the Taj at the time of the attacks. But retired Admiral Arun Prakash says that the navy and the coast guards’ job is to secure the high seas, not the shallow waters of the coast. “The police should have set up a marine force in Mumbai to patrol the harbor and the valuable ground installations,” he said. “That’s not the navy’s job,” he says.

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The terror tale speaks by it –self as how the terrorists planned so meticulously to fail out the intelligence of the Indian Government.

The background of the terrorist wave lies in the fact of Kashmir situation.The story of Kashmir goes on.Kashmir problem is as old as India’s independence.After India got freedom,Pakistan sent her raiders to take Kashmir by force.Her argument was that Kashmir being 90% Muslim must come to the share of Pakistan.Pakistan had been created on the basis of two-nations theory.In the face of Pakistan’s aggression in october,1947,the Hindu Maharaja of Kashmir acceded to India and the British Governor-general of India,Lord Mountbatten accepted the occasion.Thus POK was created,which sowed the seeds of terrorism taken up the Muslim fundamentalists. A group of 12 terrorists took up sea route, as divulaged by the 22 yr. old militant, Qasab.They hijacked a fishing traveler off the Western coast and whole eran was put to death.Only one fisherman was kept alive in order to prove a guide to them.He gave directions how to reach the city’s coast,lateron he was also done to death.This information corraborates with the information provided by the investigating agencies.The Let’s marine wing was involved in this terrorist exercise.This wing had provided a number of terriorists with commando training and also longistic support was provided to them.Over 183 are dead and 327 hurt in the barbaric attack.

I have been under trauma till the terrorists were not flushed out totally,I read harrowing tales of the hostages,who were kept as as defence wall by the militants.The affect of this attack on people,can be gauged from horrowing tales we read throuh the newspaper o4r on TV channels.I may quate as an example, as a person Justice Sodhi,he was face to face withb terror.It was a rare experience for him and he would try to forget it as quickly as he can,but I think will not be able to do so.He could never imagine such a traumatic experience that could happen in Mumbai.He told the whole terror story to the media,how he along with five others was rescued from the corporate club of Taj hotel,after 11 hours of breathless shelter there. Really it was a harrowing time for guests of the Taj.It was at 9.30 pm after checking in the elite Taj hotel,that Justice S.S.Sodhi was virtually confronted with this terriost attack,he was fired at by a young terrorist,about 20 years old.He shot at a shop connecting main lobby of the hotel.Out of 11 hours of trauma,he had to spend about 6 hours in WC rest room at the hotel till his rescue at 9.25am,next morning,marked by enxitety,suspense and horror but also had him packed like sardins in the small toilet,with gunshots and the grenade blastd,immediate outside.The hotel staff,during this period,had switched off the water and eleciticy connections.The weather of Mumbai is already hot and sentry in addition of the gun shots and bomb explosius it became all the more troublesome and worst ever.The grenade blasts outside made them all others more full of horror.Virtualy they were on the thrashold of death,which was looking them in face.They were anxiously waiting for the security forces at day dawn.Justice Sodhi says,”When I looked at the watch,it was 9.25am,I rubbed my eyes in disblief as we thought it to be around 6 in the morning,but on cross checking with the hotel staff,we realised,how long we were in forced and terrible capativity.We were all fear stuck as we continued to hear gunshots and granade blasts just outside our shelter.”After they came out,they realised that whatsoever was being shown on various TV Channels,was far from thouth as what was actually happening inside hotels,was far more serious and tottuous than could be shown.Justice Sodhi who had seen the the truth told an escort from Taj that atleast 4 chefs of hotel and several members of the security staff,not of hotel but also of the police and army were killed.He again said ,”it was quite a hell of an experience for me as I could never imagine that such a thing would happen in Mumbai.” Further the throats of hostages were slit and then killed at regular intervals.They were also kept as human shields in the form of hostages where after they were killed by slow degrees.Many people were traced out as dead from the hotel rooms.In some cases the hostages spent traumatic time, throughout the two/three nights, among the dead, with the rooms closed and darkness with no water supply. In my personal view such terrorist attacks would certainly create a fissure in India’s regional diplomacy.I have been pondering over this question ,when the government has already taken some drastic steps in order to curb this menace of terrorist,which has been found so inhuman and no value for human life-such barbaric attacks would devalue human life on this planet as terrorism has been spreading its tentacles throughout the world.As such it has become an international problem.This Mumbai terror –attack has reminded Indians the attack on USA-the biggest ever,the World had experienced.

Only today an e-mail threats to blow up Delhi airport,has been received,no doubt the government has taken extra measures and the security has been beefed,still the terrorist activities have become the order of the day,inspite of all essential steps taken by the government.Daily we find the tearful farewells to our dear and near ones/Indians of our motherland as the terrorists have no sympathy for human life and their properties.So much so they themselves became human bomb and result in lot of destruction around. Recently heart –rendering scnes were witnessed at the funeral of journalist Sabina Sehgal and major Sandeep Unikrishan of Bihar regional centre.It is rather different to come the loss of such precious lives.Moreover the families of them stand nowhere,,the whole family is upset and goes topsy tervy. Yesterday an all –party meeting was called by Prime Minister.There was no consensus on how to tackle terror.The meeting lasts for 5 hours at PM’s official residence but could not reach any concrete solution.However the government has taken some measures to immediately control the situation.The Home Minister has been replaced.NSG has to be augumented to control the onslought of terrorism. I feel the government should take strictmeasures to curb the demon of terrorism. My condolence is with theeffected families,may Almighty give them stregth to tolerate the loss.

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I pray for the souls of the innocent victims and our brave soldiers who lost their lives in Mumbai attacks.

What we witnessed on the tv was horrible. This terror attack has proved the worthlessness of our politicians, bureaucrats and intelligence agencies. I feel unsafe in this country and worry for the future of our children. Despite warnings from US agencies and knowledge of a terror strike impending on Mumbai this thing happened. This shows none of the top-level people take the security of the country seriously. It is high time the Indian public moves to action and motivates a public opinion. We the citizens should no more take our voting rights for granted and stop getting swayed by politics based on caste and creed. Notice how Thackrey disappeared from the scene when only few weeks back he was shouting slogans of Mumbai Navnirman. Such politicians have led us to see this day. People of India need to wake up and learn a lesson. Stop following politicians blindly, exercise your vote to choose the right person, be vocal in your opinion.

As far as the diplomacy is concerned we all are witnessing the drama of politicians stepping down taking Moral responsibility. Fine, but this isn't enough we should plunge into action, gather the evidence and motivate world opinion in our favor to attack the terrorist camps . The latest news is that some 5 or more terrorists might still be at large in Mumbai. So we are still vulnerable. One never knows that while we are busy analyzing and witnessing the drama of our politicians somewhere those terrorists might be planning something else. The need of the hour is that every Indian stays committed to his/her duty towards the country to prevent any further threat to national security.

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When i heard about the mumbai attack i think this is the right time to .... RE-ISSUE THe POTA ACT other wise we could not safely live in our country. This type of rocks or happened. after two or three weeks the government and the public also stop talk about this type of the ATTACKS then later some month or week Another blast or massive attack will held in other Region like tamil adu, kerala,andhra pradesh so pls take a neccessory Action on this type of attacks against the civilians & put strong punishment again the terrorism. i don`t know why MR Manmohan or Sonia `s government show mildness on the terrorism or terrorist .... pls write the severe punish aginst the terrorism in the INDIAN CONSTITUTION... Untill the terrorism wil not End..... and then OUR GOVERNMENT SHOULD THINK ABOUT THE RELATION SHIP WITH PAKIS(T)AN finally i congrates our NSG commondo forces for the rescues,,, I HOPE TO BHARATH MATHA INHEREAFTER THIS TYPE OF ATTACKS SHOULD NOT BE ANY WHERE IN THE CONNER OF THE WORLD......................................................

1. I HERE BY APPRECIATE THE POLICE , CAMMANDO, NAVY/AIR FORCE AND NSG FOR THEIR OPPERATIONS. 2. COMMENTS: WE ALL KNOW, IT IS VERY EASY TO COMMENT. BUT IN THE FILED IT IS VERY DIFFICULT. 3. NECCESSARY STEPS SHOULD BE TAKEN IN FUTURE: SECURITY IN ALL AREAS SHOULD BE INCREASED. IE. SEA SHORES, HOTELS, RAILWAY STATIONS, AIR PORT AND OTHER IMMPORTANT AREAS. HIDDEN CAMERAS SHOULD BE INCREASED IN ALL PLACES. 4. POLICE FRIENDS ASSOCIATION SHOULD BE CREATED IN ALL AREAS AND POLICE CAN USE PUBLICS HELP FOR SECURITY PURPOSES. 5. NEW LAW SHOULD BE BROUGHT FOR TERRORISM AND SHOULD BE REMOVED UPTO THE ROOT. 6. ALL BUILDINGS/ HOTELS SKETCHES SHOULD BE MADE AND KEPT READY COMPELLSARILLY. SO THAT WE CAN SAVE OUR BRILLIANT POLICE MEN. THEY CAN MOVE FORWARD AGAINST TERRORIST EASILY. 7. POLICE MEN SHOULD WEAR PULLET PROOF DRESS AND ACCESSORIES. 8. MILLITARY CAMPS SHOULD BE SHIFTED TO IMPORTANT AREAS WHERE SECURITY IS MUST ALWAYS. WE ALL SHOULD PROUD OF OUR POLICEMEN, WHO HAVE DIED FOR NATION. SALUTE TO THEM.

JAI HIND

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By viewing the scenes in the TV Channels everybody's heart is broken.This will unite the country apart from the politics.Every Indian now is waiting for the chance to take revange.This will happen soon.

Thank god that the two most prestigious Hotels are not smashed out.I salute to the NSG commandos for their brave and courageous fight against the cruel pakistani terrorists.We have to notice one more thing here that the family of Shaheed Karkare rejected the help from MR.Modi.We have to bow to their family for such decision every politician should feel ashamed of them.This is real heart blowing incident.No more words to explain it.

And our Indian politics ....really hats off.The whole India is roaring about the incidents that had happen.And Dy.CM of Maharastra said in a big country such incidents will happen some times.So what other that this we can expect from him.Similary the other poiticains.Can anybody can entered in that stuation? Just going to hospitals and meeting the injured persons and run away from the Situation.Everybody has to die for them .......they will enjoy like Neros.

Look Mr.Modi courage ...he want to help the real heros.Why not the politicians fight like NSG Commandos.Is it not a good suggestion that we shuld go in Army's rule now.Then we can develop.

In the present situation there should be army rule and the govt.should step down and no more elections.If our politicians are real patriots please step down and at least for now and save India by handovering it to the Army

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Mumbai has been a target for terrorists for long, and still this happened. Security people didn't had a clue of what was going to happen. I wonder why ATS was created if they can't even keep a tap on such things. Coastal area around Mumbai and Gujrat has been terrorists gateway to Inda for a long time. Still that area is available for anyone to work their way through.

How is it going to effect India's regional diplomacy?

It sis already ruined. Ever since the partition, India(politicans) has been blaming Pakistan for such attacks. For once, if we can say that it's our own defense system that is weak, which is why w have these attacks. Just for the sake of proving my point, take the example of our body. Why do we get sick? Because our own immune system is not strong enough, or there has been some problem or other all along that we never took care of and all of sudden we are bed ridden.

The same goes for the whole country. Our own politicians are not doing their job. Can we trust them, can we say that they have not done anything wrong in their lifetime? NO. I don't trust them , they are the biggest terrorists we have in our system. Excuse me, if anybody doesn't like me calling them terrorists, but aren't they robbing us in some way or other?

They are the weakest link in our chain. Only if we can get rid of such links, we will be able to take care of the outsiders. Think, for over 50 years we have blamed Pakistan for the terrorists activity. Isn't that lame?

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India's shine had already been dulled as foreign portfolio investors fled from risk around the globe, helping send the stock market down 55 percent this year. Tight liquidity, a battered currency and a slowing of Indian economic growth add to the gloom.

The attacks were a reminder that risk in India extended beyond the red tape and crumbling infrastructure that investors accepted as a cost of doing business in the country.

"In the near term this highlights the risk of investing in markets which have instability of some form or the other," said Ashish Goyal, chief investment officer at Prudential Asset Management in Singapore.

India, like other emerging and developed markets, has endured militant attacks before and managed to bounce back. Goyal said the future for India would change only if the latest attack slowed the economy and scared off foreign companies.

"It could raise the cost of security, it could raise the effectual cost of doing business, and at the margin that's not positive but doesn't fundamentally alter the investment view or the perceived risk of investing in India," he said.

The timing of the attacks, which came as the central bank struggled to defend a weakening rupee and stabilize credit markets, may hurt more than previous attacks, wrote Nikhilesh Bhattacharyya, an associate economist at Moody's Economy.com.

"This means that capital outflows will have a greater impact than they did in the past, though history suggests that any reaction to attacks in Mumbai will only be temporary," he said.

The Indian central bank expects the economy to expand by 7.5 percent to 8 percent in the 2008-09 fiscal year, but many private economists and some government officials see growth closer to 7 percent.

"We don't think there is any immediate impact on the Indian economy, although longer-term it will get that much harder to attract and retain foreign capital, at the margin," said Daniel Chui, head of investor communications at JF Asset Management. "Sentiment in India, particularly Mumbai, will be dented even more," he said from Hong Kong.

Kamal Nath, the Indian trade minister, said Thursday that he was confident the deadly attacks would not slow investment. "This does not have an economic component," he said.

His confidence was echoed by Jan Masiel, a member of the European Parliament, who is visiting Mumbai with a trade delegation of eight and staying at the Taj Mahal Hotel, at the center of the hostage drama.

"I don't think this affects India's image as a good place to do business in," Masiel said, adding, "neither do we consider India to be an insecure or unsafe country to be in."

Some investors said that after the initial shock of the attacks wore off, attention would return to the fundamentals.

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I am in Chennai amd was in a another kind of ordeal at the same time. Rain and rain everywhere it was flooding chennai at the sametime that I missed out all that happened for some time.

What hell it was, no one I knew was there but it was a blow to the Indians, how the terrorists got in just like that under their very own noses etc? Don't you think so? Now they are saying that the Police and the other Intelligence sources had already warned the hotels to intensify their security, but it seems they took little care.

Now NSG had to come where only a few weeks ago Raj Thackerey made such a scene saying that they can do everything themselves and only marathis need stay in Mumbai. they didn't need anyother help from anyoneelse. NSG had to come and see who lost their lives, men from other parts of india has been killed there. But what is worrying me is that Mumbai is worried only about their heroes who died and not about the others who died there. If they do pooja or pay respects for the dead it should be for all the dead and not just the Mumbai people who had laid down their lives. We are all Indians first and then our comes our cities and the sates in which we live. Everyone should understand that India is One country and All Indians are brothers and Sisters, which we were taught in school days holds good even in these days. Those who say that states can look after their own welfare can better shut up now and live as one group Indians. Jaihind

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Affects on Indias regional diplomacy will be very bad because, the targets were foreigners, so the tourism which generates most of its revenue from foreign visitors will be affected badly. Investors will be scared to invest in India. This might even lead to a war with pakistan because tension is mounting on the border and India is blaming pakistan for the attacks.

Actions to be taken by the Government: 1. Bring awareness among citizens to report any kind of suspicious act. 2. Increase technology used by the Intelligence bureau and keep them focussed on their work. 3. Improve relationship with pakistan government to stop terrorism. 4. Train commandos to tackle such situations without any casualities.

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Thanks for posting a question that has made lot of Indians around the world to share their feelings for thier fellow beings . First of all we must pay tribute to all the commandos who has lost their life to save most of the lives in Mumbai.

Next feel really sorry for the loss of innocent lives for no cause .

When Indian government can send Rockets and satilites to find what is the situation in space why not Indian Government form some team to ananlyse this situation and avoid crime within the country.

Though we say ,it is difficult to bring such a possible effect as India is a mixed country in all ways .There were channels which were insisting on their own nationality people showing concerns on that. Why not Indian government show the same to Indian people.

People should stop voting and the army rule is best. No political party is better to other.

These parties dont have time to find fault abt others then where will they have time for this . Police should be given seperate rule . Political parties should have no influence on police.

Now atleast by seeing this will India Government take some steps to avoid loss good commandos and innocents lives and make the proverb true Failure is stepping stone for success.

Shobana

Shobana

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It is very sad that a lot of innocent people and brave and courageous officers died.Despite clear warnings from the IB the state and central governments did not take any action or taken safety measures.Each and every political party in the country are bothered about the vote bank politics.There is no strict law to punish terrorists.

The recent attack will definately be a big jolt to the business and tourism.It will effect these industries to the tune of some billions.

The first and foremost thing that the government should do is to warn pakistan of doing such mistakes and sending terrorists.These Paki people does not have a shame that despite their own country is being suffering from Taliban on the Afghan border they are doing such activities in another country. I feel that some strict law should be enforced to deal with terrorism and the punishment should be given within 30 days.Even the terrorist who has been caught be immediately shot dead after interrrogation.Otherwise some incident like Kandahar will repeat and he will be freed or else some court will let him free by simply saying that no evidences are being produced.

Hope the government will wake up now.

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by M.D. Nalapat Manipal, India (UPI) Dec 1, 2008

Since the terror attacks on Mumbai five days ago, Indian security sources have promoted evidence that the attackers were trained by elements of the Pakistani military.

While the field training took place at a camp run by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency near Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, fluency in the handling of ordnance was taught at another ISI safe house on the outskirts of Karachi.

Pakistan has done little to create deniability about these connections or earlier links discovered by U.S. intelligence agencies between the ISI and the July 7 bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Many analysts see the top priority of Pakistani intelligence as reversing India's path toward social stability and economic growth. Still, why were so many telltale clues left behind in these attacks that enraged the Indian public and made the world aware that India is among the softest terrorist targets of the major democracies?

The hope of those who planned last week's attack was that India would respond to the attacks the way it did to the attack on its Parliament in 2001 -- by mobilizing troops on the Pakistan border and creating an expectation that a full-scale, conventional India-Pakistan war was imminent. At that time Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee's unwise decision to "bluff" the Pakistanis into cooperating with India by the threat of war boomeranged on New Delhi. Foreign missions evacuated their nationals in a panic and business confidence plunged.

Even at that time, it was known to policymakers in most major capitals that India was bluffing, and that the genial Vajpayee would never actually go to war. Yet they participated in the hysteria, especially the United States, where there is a thriving industry of so-called conflict-resolution specialists whose declared mission is to stop India and Pakistan from going to war with each other.

Both countries are aware that a war would be suicidal for Pakistan and severely damaging for India. So the specialists will be able to toast their imagined success in keeping the peace, thereby securing more funding from their less-informed patrons.

Those within the military establishment in Pakistan who enabled the Mumbai operation are now waiting for the government of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to go the way of Vajpayee and send additional Indian troops to the border. In anticipation of such a move, they already have frozen selected deployments of reinforcements to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas -- the frontier region of Pakistan that has become the new home of al-Qaida -- and issued provisional orders for sending additional forces and equipment to the border with India.

The reason is simple: Having no desire to eliminate al-Qaida, these military commanders are seeking to use the "threat from India" as an excuse for inaction on the western frontier. They will seek to explain their patent unwillingness to engage the terrorists by pointing to the need to bolster defenses against an Indian attack.

Unfortunately for them, this time around there is zero chance of India repeating the mistake of 2001, which was to mobilize when it was clear that war was never going to be an option. Also, intelligence agencies worldwide have better reach into the Pakistan military than previously.

In reality, the next war involving Indian and Pakistani troops is likely to be both sides acting together to take out the jihadis. But this will have to await a cleansing of the pro-jihadi elements from the officer corps of the Pakistani army, a necessary process that the present army chief is resisting.

Those Western commentators and analysts cultivated by the Pakistani army have begun churning out analyses speaking of "heightened tensions" between India and Pakistan. Foolishly, U.S. President George W. Bush has fanned the flames of such inspired speculation by inserting Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice into the region, rather than adopting an attitude of "business as usual." Rice, in desperate need of some -- any -- perceived diplomatic success, can be expected to follow the playbook of the South Asia crisis management specialists by hinting at substantive tensions that do not in fact exist, at least on the Indian side.

Aware that both Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani are blameless with regard to the Mumbai attacks, the Indian government of Manmohan Singh has been careful not to place any blame on the civilian leadership in Pakistan.

The Mumbai attack was a Pakistani military operation, in which even the navy was involved, as reported by India Today. The civilian government had no role in it, nor was it informed of the planning and execution of the attack.

By continuing to regard the present Pakistani military as part of the solution to the problem of global terrorism rather than as a principal target, the United States and its NATO allies are creating the conditions that will allow jihadis to breed in the region in sufficient numbers to be able to launch attacks against targets in the United States and Europe.

The civilian administration in Pakistan, led by Zardari, needs assistance to secure control over the military. Next the jihadi elements must be purged from the Pakistan officer corps if the country is to be rescued from the jihadist nightmare into which it has fallen, undoubtedly due to major policy errors of the Western powers since the 1980s.

Recent statements by U.S. President-elect Barack Obama reveal a dangerous incomprehension about ground realities in the region. No solution is possible over Kashmir or other pending India-Pakistan issues until the Pakistani military comes under civilian control and is cleansed of the jihadi elements that control much of its officer corps.

Those who planned the Mumbai attacks to create an alibi for their refusal to take out al-Qaida in the tribal regions will be disappointed. This time India will not fall into the trap laid by the Pakistani military by sending additional troops to the border and creating war hysteria that would divert attention away from the ongoing campaign against al-Qaida.

(Professor M.D. Nalapat is vice chair of the Manipal Advanced Research Group, UNESCO peace chair and professor of geopolitics at Manipal University.)

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goverment should keep more security in coastal areas, training to the police,focus on intelligence and right now they should take maximum care of victims and their families.

When someone has some doubt about anything in the public places they should inform immediately to the police.

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