Author: Kavitha Iyer
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: July 16, 2006
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/iep/sunday/story/8578.html
Introduction: The bureaucrats ran a smooth
show
Even as the seven near-synchronised bombs
had just finished exploding, Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Johny Joseph was
already receiving the first reports. Much before the cellphone networks passed
out, he had called the hospitals and fire chiefs. The disaster control cell
in the basement was told to expect the commissioner to take charge. Then he
was on the phone with Mantralaya.
There, Chief Secretary D K Sankaran was already
commanding his forces, linking urgent tasks with bureaucrats at lightning
speed. Metropolitan Commissioner T Chandrashekhar was pulled out of preparing
an all-important report on the status of roads to handle Bandra's Bhabha Hospital,
where he was joined later by Additional Municipal Commissioner Shrikant Singh.
Additional Municipal Commissioner R A Rajeev was at KEM Hospital, which saw
the most number of patients.
When Joseph left the control room after fielding
hundreds of calls about blood, ambulances, shifting patients, post-mortem
requirements and stranded passengers, it was to visit Bhabha Hospital, then
back to BMC.
''Communication was very smooth, from the
headquarters, control room and from Mantralaya,'' says Additional Municipal
Commissioner Vijaysinh Patankar who was posted at Sion Hospital. ''Our job
was to ensure that there was no delay for want of an immediate decision.''
It was 4 am when this bedraggled team returned
home, before heading back a couple of hours later to hospitals, control rooms
and more tough decisions.
