Six years on, Mumbai remembers its bravehearts

November 26, 2014 10:19 am | Updated November 16, 2021 04:43 pm IST - Mumbai

Wife of slain encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar,Smita Salaskar, and daughter Divya pay tributes atthe police memorial in Mumbai on Wednesday. Photo: Vivek Bendre

Wife of slain encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar,Smita Salaskar, and daughter Divya pay tributes atthe police memorial in Mumbai on Wednesday. Photo: Vivek Bendre

At Mumbai’s famous Leopold Cafe, things go on as usual except when one takes a closer look at its walls. It’s been six years yet the physical scars left behind by the terrorists are visible. They serve as grim reminders of the deadliest terror attack the city has witnessed

Of the 166 people who were killed in the 2008 attack, 11 were from the cafe — gunned down brutally by Ajmal Kasab’s two other colleagues.

The cafe that underwent a makeover after the attack retained the bullet marks, thus ensuring that the incident remains a point of conversation among its patrons.

“I feel Mumbai is much safer now. There are more policemen on the streets and we also read about them getting better equipment,” said Deepa Singh, a regular.

On the anniversary of the attack, the maximum city remembered its bravehearts and the victims who were killed by the bullets of Ajmal Kasab and nine other terrorists in the 62-hour-long siege.

Floral tributes were paid to the policemen who laid down their lives in the line of duty.

Maharashtra’s Education Minister Vinod Tawade and senior police officers, including Director-General of Police Sanjiv Dayal and Mumbai Commissioner Rakesh Maria, were present at the police memorial site in South Mumbai to pay homage to the men.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that getting the city wired was his priority.

“We will expedite the process and allocate the required funds to ensure that there is no more delay in getting the cameras,” Mr. Fadnavis said while paying homage to the martyrs and victims of 26/11 in Pune.

The proposal to get 5,000 CCTV cameras for the city has been stuck at the tendering stage.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.