A Tribute to the Resilience of Mumbaikars
for surviving the Mayhem of 7/11
It is exactly 24 hours since the blasts occurred in
Mumbai that I cast this mail.
11th day of the
7th month saw
7 trains local trains were blasted across
7 locations in
11 minutes
making it one of the most “Terrible Tuesdays” for
Mumbai in particular and India as a whole.
Innocent lives were lost and the numbers according to
the police and the media is around 180 killed, and
around 380 injured seems to be a very unrealistic
statement. Anyone who can see the pictures and power
of the blasts one can surely estimate that the numbers
are much more than being given to understand.
What stands out once again is the spirit of the
Mumbaikars the way they bounce back every time after a
disaster – be it the serial blasts that occurred in
1993 or the deluge struck by nature last year with
flash floods.
About 16-18 million people of those who are residents
(permanent and transitory) of Mumbai rise to the
occasion. The way the city has spread and the
infrastructure that has been provided leaves a gap,
which whatever one may do will take time to fill. It
is at times such as this that the “common man” fits in
to fill the breach, like how the people who live in
the neighborhood of the locations where the blast
occurred yesterday to offer immediate assistance to
rescue the injured and to remove the bodies that were
lying helplessly either due to pain or ceasing to
live.
Elsewhere on the roads people were there offering tea,
biscuits and whatever they could for those who were
trying to reach homes by whatever means. Strangers
offering lifts, people going out of the safety of
their homes to reach out for those who needed them.
People standing in queue to donate blood to safe the
lives of those who needed it.
Sallaam Mumba Sallaam thera koi jawab nahi…
Their spirit can be compared only to the waves in the
ocean – they rise once again as one falls. People who
“terrorize” should note that the waves someday can
become a “Tsunami” and consume them.
I was Mumbai during the 1993 serial blast and I know
how difficult it was to get across the message to your
near and dear about your being safe. In those days the
media was not what it is this day nr did we have the
facility of the mobiles etc. Yes despite all this the
mobiles and the telephone lines were all jammed.
Perhaps the life line was the electronic media and the
internet. Yet there were so many who still did not
know what happened to their near and dear. About 30-40
bloggers got together and started posting information
about the blast they were on
www.mumbaihelp.blogspot.com
We the loving children of India, be it from within or
from all over the globe offer our condolences to all
those families who have lost someone close to them and
to those who are recovering from grave injuries, we
sincerely hope and pray that they will get well soon
and get back to normal life at the earliest.
And to those who are responsible for this cowardly
act, let me assure you that you are taking on the
might of the second largest population of the world,
you can’t get away with this for long. You may think
that you’ve created panic by such heinous crimes you
commit be it in Mumbai or in the “Valley in Kashmir.”
You can’t break the resolve of the Indians, you can’t
stop us from becoming a “power in the future.” You
can’t take our kindness as timidity. Beware, every
thing is being counted and you are accountable for
every drop of blood you’ve made to shed for every life
you’ve taken and for every life you’ve crippled. We
believe in “Karma and Dharma” and ourselves, so you’ve
taken the wrong people to show your mite. How many
more mistakes can you make and how many more times can
we pardon you. You’ve tried our patience for a long
time now, take it that this will not go for too long.
Just the next day of the blast the “The Sensex”
located at “Mumbai” the financial capital of India
reported that the sensex rose by 340 points.
“Salaam Mumbai, Sallaam India..”
Do preserve yourself & others while evolving continuously...
for surviving the Mayhem of 7/11
It is exactly 24 hours since the blasts occurred in
Mumbai that I cast this mail.
11th day of the
7th month saw
7 trains local trains were blasted across
7 locations in
11 minutes
making it one of the most “Terrible Tuesdays” for
Mumbai in particular and India as a whole.
Innocent lives were lost and the numbers according to
the police and the media is around 180 killed, and
around 380 injured seems to be a very unrealistic
statement. Anyone who can see the pictures and power
of the blasts one can surely estimate that the numbers
are much more than being given to understand.
What stands out once again is the spirit of the
Mumbaikars the way they bounce back every time after a
disaster – be it the serial blasts that occurred in
1993 or the deluge struck by nature last year with
flash floods.
About 16-18 million people of those who are residents
(permanent and transitory) of Mumbai rise to the
occasion. The way the city has spread and the
infrastructure that has been provided leaves a gap,
which whatever one may do will take time to fill. It
is at times such as this that the “common man” fits in
to fill the breach, like how the people who live in
the neighborhood of the locations where the blast
occurred yesterday to offer immediate assistance to
rescue the injured and to remove the bodies that were
lying helplessly either due to pain or ceasing to
live.
Elsewhere on the roads people were there offering tea,
biscuits and whatever they could for those who were
trying to reach homes by whatever means. Strangers
offering lifts, people going out of the safety of
their homes to reach out for those who needed them.
People standing in queue to donate blood to safe the
lives of those who needed it.
Sallaam Mumba Sallaam thera koi jawab nahi…
Their spirit can be compared only to the waves in the
ocean – they rise once again as one falls. People who
“terrorize” should note that the waves someday can
become a “Tsunami” and consume them.
I was Mumbai during the 1993 serial blast and I know
how difficult it was to get across the message to your
near and dear about your being safe. In those days the
media was not what it is this day nr did we have the
facility of the mobiles etc. Yes despite all this the
mobiles and the telephone lines were all jammed.
Perhaps the life line was the electronic media and the
internet. Yet there were so many who still did not
know what happened to their near and dear. About 30-40
bloggers got together and started posting information
about the blast they were on
www.mumbaihelp.blogspot.com
We the loving children of India, be it from within or
from all over the globe offer our condolences to all
those families who have lost someone close to them and
to those who are recovering from grave injuries, we
sincerely hope and pray that they will get well soon
and get back to normal life at the earliest.
And to those who are responsible for this cowardly
act, let me assure you that you are taking on the
might of the second largest population of the world,
you can’t get away with this for long. You may think
that you’ve created panic by such heinous crimes you
commit be it in Mumbai or in the “Valley in Kashmir.”
You can’t break the resolve of the Indians, you can’t
stop us from becoming a “power in the future.” You
can’t take our kindness as timidity. Beware, every
thing is being counted and you are accountable for
every drop of blood you’ve made to shed for every life
you’ve taken and for every life you’ve crippled. We
believe in “Karma and Dharma” and ourselves, so you’ve
taken the wrong people to show your mite. How many
more mistakes can you make and how many more times can
we pardon you. You’ve tried our patience for a long
time now, take it that this will not go for too long.
Just the next day of the blast the “The Sensex”
located at “Mumbai” the financial capital of India
reported that the sensex rose by 340 points.
“Salaam Mumbai, Sallaam India..”
Do preserve yourself & others while evolving continuously...
