May 18, 2007: A powerful bomb explodes at the Mecca Masjid. Police reach the spot in less than five minutes. But they have no idea of what to do next. The site is not cordoned off, the evidence not protected.
August 25, 2007: Bombs go off at Lumbini Park and the Gokul Chat Bhandar. The police react the same way. Neither of the blast sites is cordoned off. Bomb squad personnel try defusing a bomb without wearing protective gear.
Hyderabad: Seventy-two hours after twin blasts rocked Hyderabad, the police are still groping for leads. The city police have been under fire over the last three months for ineffective handling of bomb blasts cases.
But an insight into the Hyderabad Police structure shows that its men are not equipped or trained to handle new age terror.
Experts say that despite a great change in the crime pattern, especially in the last one decade, the Hyderabad police did not mould its style of functioning.
For the policemen who are accustomed to handling theft, robbery or murder cases, tackling organised terror groups has emerged as a major challenge.
The state government has now decided to revamp the Hyderabad police, with a special focus on gathering intelligence.
"Special trained intelligence organisations will be set up. They'll be given extra salary, extra training, extra equipment. They'll be almost like world-class,” said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S R Reddy.
The Hyderabad police have many special wings, but none focused on fighting terror. The Task Force spends most of its time on petty cases like pirated CDs. The Special Branch is confined to verifying passport applications. The Central Crime Station is overburdened with economic offences, while The City Security Wing only deals with providing security to VIPs. The Special Investigation Team always depends on the other wings. The Clues Team is not trained to investigate sophisticated explosives. While the Bomb Squad faces a shortage of trained staff.
Sources say the Hyderabad police will be divided into three main wings after the revamp- one for intelligence gathering and security, another to investigate routine crime and a special Anti-Terrorist Cell to counter terror groups.
But former CBI director K.Vijayarama Rao says the strategy won't work. "This is a ploy by the chief minister or whoever it is, to divert the attention of the people. Simply put the blame on the police. We'll revamp the intelligence, we will revamp the police,” he says.
An expert committee is to submit a report on the revamp to the government in the next 15 days.
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