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THE NATION: INDO-PAK SUMMIT
Security: A Key Concern
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WINDOW DRESSING: Much needed repair work
being done at the Taj Mahal cenotaph |
In keeping with
the tradition of hospitality, the Agra administration has also shortlisted
a few shopping areas where Begum Musharraf might choose to pick up some
mementos. Among them are the Oswal and Kohinoor emporia, and the Sadar
Bazar (mainly leather, retail outlets). The Agra Development Authority
has begun work, sanctioning fresh coats of paints for dirty sidewalks
and sprucing up prime avenues of VIP movement. Waterlogging at this time
of the year with Agra receiving more than the occasional shower is of
concern. The services of 500 personnel from the Agra Municipal Corporation,
state PWD, and departments of irrigation and forests have been requisitioned.
The cenotaph chamber, the main mausoleum where Shahjahan rests, is also
being spruced up.
Security remains a key concern. Though Delhi
is yet to spell out the details of the programme, officials have begun
their own planning. The security agencies have put all leading hotels
in Agra under surveillance in the belief that any conspiracy to derail
the summit can be thwarted. Joining them this week will be the Pakistani
intelligence agencies, and discussions on the presidential routes will
be held. Also featuring in the exchange will be routes to be used by Begum
Musharraf for possible visits to Agra's other landmarks-Sikandra, Fatehpur
Sikri and Agra Fort.
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| HOME NO MORE: Hem Chand Gola holds the original
construction plan of the haveli in old Delhi (in the backdrop) where
Musharraf spent his early years before the Partition |
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All roads leading to Agra have been put under
scrutiny as have the bylanes leading to Musharraf's ancestral home in
old Delhi. Regional transport officials have been asked to check buses
for arms and explosives; police patrol cars will now be driving up and
down from Agra to destinations like Mathura and Ferozabad. In all 25 executive
magistrates have been detailed to oversee security arrangements along
with the state police, whose chief flew down from Lucknow for confabulations
with senior officials at Agra last week.
Surveillance around the Taj has also been intensified,
both at the four gates and the periphery, including the stinking banks
of the Yamuna behind the Taj. Assures S.N. Jha, divisional commissioner,
Agra: "We will leave no stone unturned to make it security fool-proof.
The task is formidable, but we are up to it." In keeping with his
words, close to 1,000 uniformed men, including snipers and commandos from
the elite wings of the paramilitary forces, National Security Guard, and
intelligence agencies will descend on Agra this week. The number could
easily go up, if threat perceptions so demand.
It seems Agra is going through yet another of
its upheavals. Some years ago organisers for musician Yanni laid siege
to the city, forcing a general clean- up. Then came Clinton. Now comes
Musharraf and with him the international media that will dissect not just
every word spoken at the summit, but also the city itself. Some good might
come out of all this. Muses Mohammad Arif, a 25-year-old guide at the
Taj Mahal: "Let's hope the changes in Agra are not as short-lived
as in the past." Like Arif, many will be hoping that love's labour
is not lost yet again.
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