Mumbai: To check its preparedness in the
event of a terror attack, the city police on Wednesday conducted a
mock drill at Chembur in the eastern suburbs of the megapolis.
Over 300 police personnel wearing bullet proof jackets
and armed with AK-47s took positions at various spots near K
Star Mall as part of the exercise.
"We were testing our preparedness by conducting mock
drills. This will enable us to know the topography of the area
and we can swiftly take positions in case of any adverse
situation," Deputy Police Commissioner Dilip Sawant said.
The exercise lasted for about 45 minutes.
However, passers-by, unaware of the drill, were scared to
see policemen bearing arms taking positions and a large number
of vans parked outside the mall.
"I remembered last year's terror attacks when I saw
policemen running around the area. I was shocked and for a
minute I thought if it is another terror attack in Mumbai,"
said Priyanka Prakash, a business analyst.
She added that like her many of her co-passengers also
thought that there was again a terror attack and such
drills will help police in the long run.
Elaborating on the exercise, Sawant said, "Imagining that
something has happened, we chalk out our strategy on how to
bring the situation under control and rescue the victims."
This will enable us to gauge the preparedness in terms of
planning and response time and also help us to measure overall
performance, he added.
Bureau Report
First Published: Wednesday, September 16, 2009, 18:19