Safe Mysore - Strategic Planning Workshop

Background
The recent events in Mumbai and frequent attacks by terrorists across the country has made it imperative that the citizens of Mysore should form a non political and non religious movement irrespective of their faith, caste, creed, region etc., Mysore citizens need to introspect and evolve action items needed to make ‘Safe Mysore’. 

 The workshop addressed this need to facilitate citizens to actively deliberate and evolve a Strategy Action Plan to build a Safe Mysore and also in the long run allow all faiths to come together at cultural, social and spiritual level.

 Objective

The following are the main objectives of the SAFE Mysore Strategy Plan Workshop facilitated by Alert Citizens Team(ACT)  &  Mysore Police :

 

·         To evolve Implementable action items to make "Safe Mysore".

Methodology

A One day Workshop was conducted with participation from Citizens from different walks of life. The Workshop was held on Sunday the 4th January 2009 at 10am at BN Bahadur Institute of Management, Mysore

Workshop Agenda:

•          Theme Paper Presentation

–         Prof. Shivaram Malavalli, Chairman, eHealth TBI

•          Expert Talks

–         Public Private Partnership to Counter Terror

      Dr. Ajai Kumar Singh, DGP-COD, GoK

–         Sadbhavana Movement :A Case Study

      Lt. Gen Arjun Ray, CEO, Indus Trust

–         Citizens Movement on Crime & Terror

            Mr. K P C Gandhi, Truth Labs, Hyderabad

–         Terrorism: A View Point

            Mr. Firoz Bhakth Ahmed, Writer & Social activist

•          Keynote Address

Justice Venkatachallaih, Former Chief Justice of India & Former Chairman, Human Rights Commission

•          Breakout Sessions

•          Presentation by Facilitators/Captains of Breakout Sessions

Workshop Details

 

The workshop had an overwhelming response from the citizens of Mysore. The invocation ‘Bharatha Maathe Praana Daathe’ rendered by Mr. AD Srinivas was very apt and enhanced the nationalistic fervor of the participants. The participants were involved in the proceedings of the workshop with great enthusiasm and made the seminar very purposeful.

 

Welcome Address – Mr. BR Pai, Chairman, Vijay Foundation delivered the Welcome Address.

Excerpts from the Talk:

·         How do we aid authorities to make our Country Safe?

·         What can we do instead of blaming each other?

·         Do something concrete, rather than being a mere spectator/commentator

·         Extreme oneness to the fellow human being is the need of the hour without any bias of caste, creed, color.,

·         SAFE Mysore should be like Freedom Movement, which started in a small way like this by Bala Gangadhara Tilak at Pune.

·         Adoption of Dialogue-Interaction Model – Start with a dialogue, then an interaction, and structured intervention which leads to Integration of systems.

·         For effective results we need overall view and right direction, focused view for action

 

Presentation of Theme Paper – “SAFE Mysore” by Prof. Shivaram Malavalli,

President – Televital & Chairman, eHealth Technology Business Incubator.  

Excerpts of Presentation:

·         Helplessness, Anger to Action

·         What we can do? – Charity begins at home

·         Think Globally Act Locally

·         To Develop an Implementable Strategy Action Plan which can be a model for other cities

·         Bottoms-up approach to be developed and given to Department of Police and NGOs

 

A slide show was screened to recall the incidents of Mumbai attacks.

·         Impact of Terrorism

o    Loss of Public and private property

o    Reduced GDP growth

o    Destroys physical and human capital

o    Deters Foreign Direct Investment, bilateral trade

o    Demoralizes the spirit of nation

o    Divides people on religion, spreads mistrust

o    Increases level of fear and uncertainty

o    Reallocation of resources for less productive areas (defence, security)

·         Confession from the terrorist and letter to his mother

o    It was emphasized as parents ‘can we allow our children to go astray by coming under the influence of religious fundamentalists’.

·         Police should be proactive and should be people centric.

·         Interaction of Residents and Police has to happen with more frequency

·         Mohalla committees to be formed and genuine exchange of views to happen

·         Intelligence gathering in each police station

·         Quick Reaction teams

·         Safety is the Joint responsibility of Citizens and Police