India Recruits Citizens in Terrorist Fight

If anti-terrorist squads have their way, New Delhi’s landlords will be more inquisitive, citizens more cautious and growling watchdogs ever vigilant.

Fearing a rise in bombings linked to two separatist movements, police launched a citywide campaign designed to help uncover terrorists and thwart attacks.

“The basic idea is to create security awareness,” said New Delhi Deputy Commissioner of Police Neeraj Kumar.

Although the focus of the effort is terrorism, police are also warning that general crime around the nation is expected to rise by 100% during the decade, according to government estimates.

The “Crime Prevention” program has an added significance in India’s capital, where 16 people have been killed and 109 injured this year in bomb blasts blamed on Sikh militants.

Authorities are also worried another separatist battle waged by Muslim factions in the northwestern state of Jammu-Kashmir will spread to the capital. At least 300 people have died since government troops began a crackdown in the province in January.

“New Delhi is a favorite target of the extremists. And any crime-prevention program in New Delhi in the present circumstances cannot ignore terrorism,” said a senior police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Around the city of about 6 million residents, posters urge to keep a lookout for terrorists. A leaflet, “How to Terrorize Terrorists,” is being distributed along with free door chains.

Police are also conducting seminars on safety measures and appealing to people to adopt a puppy, which could become a formidable watchdog. Cash awards are offered for helpful information about extremists.

Since January, seven bombs have exploded in New Delhi. In addition, several high-powered explosive devices were found and defused. One was discovered in the crowded New Delhi railway station.

Several suspects have been arrested in connection with the blasts, but no one has been convicted.

Sikh militants, fighting for a separate homeland in the rich farming state of Punjab, have been blamed for many terrorist attacks since the early 1980s.

In 1985, a series of bombs, often concealed in transistor radios, killed at least 87 people in the capital. Two years later, Sikh gunmen fired on a birthday party south of New Delhi, killing nine people and injuring 14.

Sikhs have been blamed for more than 5,000 deaths around the nation since 1987.

Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi has ordered high walls and watch towers around his New Delhi residence for fear of attacks by Sikhs, who assassinated his mother, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, in 1984.

The anti-terrorist campaign is paying special attention to landlords, who police say often rent apartments without checking tenants’ identification and background.

“To instill fear in the terrorist’s mind . . . be sure about the credentials of your tenant,” says one police leaflet.

And potential bombs could be anywhere or anything, authorities warn.

“Always be alert for unattended luggage. While traveling in buses look out for passengers behaving in a suspicious manner. If you spot any suspicious-looking object do not touch the object. It may be a bomb,” according to a police statement.

At least one police official said the campaign has been successful.

“Just try leaving your camera at any major intersection. Nobody will pick it up and it will lie unclaimed for weeks,” said the official, who wished to remain anonymous.