26/11 four years on: India's grand terror checks a no-show

India still isn't equipped to prevent another 26/11-type attack, at least going by the status of the three anti-terror initiatives of the UPA government - the Natgrid, NCTC and the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems. Aloke Tikku reports.When terror came knocking

Four years after the Mumbai terror attacks that lasted three days, leaving 166 dead, India still isn't equipped to prevent another 26/11-type attack, at least going by the status of the three anti-terror initiatives of the UPA government - the National Intelligence Grid (Natgrid), National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems.

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"None of the big ticket projects have reached a critical mass where they would alter our capabilities in terms of counterterrorism," said security expert Ajai Sahni.

Natgrid, which was meant to set up a sophisticated network that could pull out data about any terrorist suspect within a matter of seconds, was P Chidambaram's pet project when he was home minister.

But when Chidambaram returned to the finance ministry, the project lost its most ardent supporter, and consequently, the momentum.

Artist Harwinder Singh Gill displays his latest creation, a model of the Taj Hotel depicting the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in Amritsar. UNI