Mumbai: Having faced flak for procuring
sub-standard bullet-proof jackets which failed to withstand
AK-47 bullets, Maharashtra Police today accelerated its
process to purchase the jackets and helmets, one-and-a-half
years after the Mumbai terror attacks.
The department, which has not procured a single bullet
proof jacket since the November 26, 2008 terror attacks, today
held a meeting with top bullet-proof vest and helmet
manufacturing firms, which displayed their ware at the state
police headquarters in south Mumbai.
"Representatives of around 10 vest manufacturing firms
showcased the goods to a committee appointed to review the
quality of the jackets. The committee is headed by Mumbai
Police Commissioner D Sivanandan," Dilip Srirao, Deputy
Inspector General of Police (Provisions), told PTI.
With samples of their products, producers of jackets and
helmets briefed the police brass in details about their
products, its technical features and other details, he added.
Sources said firms have showcases the jackets and helmets
which could face bullets of advanced weapons including AK-47.
The state police had come in for sharp criticism on the
procurement of sub-standard bulletproof jackets after the
death of Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare during the
Mumbai terror attacks.
The police administration later clarified that the
bulletproof jacket worn by Karkare could stop bullets fired
from a 9-mm pistol but not an AK-47 rifle.
-PTI
First Published: Wednesday, May 19, 2010, 21:36