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Non-paranoid Bombay presents contrast to Delhi

Josy Joseph in Bombay

Marching contingents and bands of several navies staged the final dress rehearsal of the city parade at Bombay's Marine Drive on Thursday as the day dawned wrapped in fog.

Naval officers were concerned about the poor visibility as the flypast a few hours later also suffered while ships moored off the Gateway of India were not clearly visible through the day.

But the remarkable absence of security paranoia was a welcome change from similar exercises in the capital as hundreds of joggers, morning walkers and urchins stood by to encourage the sailors for the final dress rehearsal. Some of those who sleep on the pavements continued to slumber, and the policemen let them be.

The city parade, to be reviewed by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, is touted by the Indian Navy as a unique event featuring marching contingents of almost 20 navies. On Thursday morning, Vice Admiral Madhvendra Singh, flag officer commanding in chief, Western Naval Command, and his senior officers reviewed the dress rehearsal led by the French marching contingent.

Some of the other contingents were from the United States, Britain, Australia, Morocco and Sri Lanka. The Moroccan contingent marched with one hand folded to their waist while several foreign navies had women in their ranks.

Both the girls' and boys' naval wings of the National Cadet Corps were also represented in the rehearsal.

But the morning after Valentine's Day belonged to the gentleman cadets of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla. The contingent from the NDA, alma mater of the officers of the Indian defence forces, got a rousing applause from young couples outside the Oberoi Hotel and along the seafront as they marched by in splendid fashion.

What was unusual, however, about the parade practice was the relaxed atmosphere that was in evidence along Marine Drive, especially to those who have suffered the gruelling, suspicious security cordons of Delhi. The entire Marine Drive was its usual self, except for traffic being blocked. Regular morning joggers were around, men and women walked briskly along the beach, while most of the homeless slept through the show peacefully.

In stark contrast to the usual intimidation and suspicious approach during formal defence events in Delhi, the Bombay practice was a more relaxed affair. Even the flypast that followed was visible to the public, who stood atop high-rises and flyovers, by the beach and along the road.

Naval officers said security would be tightened, but admitted that the parade would in no way be comparable in terms of the security to those held in the nation's capital, which is turned into a fortress before such events. Roads are blocked several days in advance, traffic is diverted, men and women are frisked and generally looked at suspiciously.

If it were Delhi, the urchins who slept peacefully on the pavements a few yards away from the Oberoi would have been bundled into a police vehicle and taken to a lockup. "Here it is all about business. I don't think such security drills suit Bombay," said a naval officer.

Thursday was also the final rehearsal for the flypast -- the mighty show to be put up by the Indian Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. The crowds that thronged Marine Drive to watch the best of Indian military aviation put up breath-taking shows reacted with cheers, claps and, sometimes, shocked silence.

Judging by the response, the navy divers, Sukhoi-30s and Surya Kirans clearly won the audience's hearts. The Su-30MKI, the IAF's proud possession, arrived in a group of four, then one split away to perform some manoeuvres very close to the sea. The machine circled superbly, swirled, then turned to disappear into the skies.

The air show began with naval divers and marine commandos performing diving skills and rescue missions after sliding down from Chetak helicopters. They carried out several manoeuvres showing off the amphibious operations that the marine commandos are capable of carrying out.

Formations of Sea King helicopters, Dorniers of the Coast Guard and Tupalov long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft were among the aircraft on display.

The Surya Kiran team with nine aircraft flying in formation performed several exercises to repeated applause from the crowd. And in the city of Bal Thackeray, three aircraft drew a heart and an arrow through it. The crowds, several of them young couples going home after a tiring Valentine's Day night, could not hold back their amusement.

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