Mumbai: Two months after it was set up, a
16-member committee, formed to study all aspects of the 26/11
Ram Pradhan panel report, today held its first meeting here.
The committee headed by Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and
comprising Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal, Home
Minister R R Patil and legislators from ruling and opposition
benches met at the state secretariat.
The Pradhan panel report had gone into the response by
the police to the 26/11 attacks and pointed out "total
confusion" in processing of intelligence alerts at the level
of the state government and "inadequacies" in the existing
mechanism for analysing alerts about possible strikes.
Among the prominent absentees at the meeting were leader
of the opposition in Assembly Eknath Khadse, who had recently
criticised the government for "not holding even a single
meeting of the committee".
Shiv Sena group leader in the Assembly Subhash Desai also
failed to turn up. The meeting finalised terms of reference of
the committee, BJP MLA Devendra Phadnvis told reporters here.
Phadnvis suggested a coastal commissionerate for security
of the 720-km-long coastal area and also expressed displeasure
over the delay in convening the first meeting.
The committee has agreed to hold separate discussion on
the Action to be Taken Report, standard operating procedures
and police modernisation, he said.
MNS legislator Bala Nandgaokar said the Pune blast could
have been avoided if the meeting had taken place earlier.
PTI
