Perfect lob

On Sunday,Home Minister P. Chidambaram walked into Hyderabads Gachibowli Stadium unannounced. Then,ticket in hand,he found himself a seat in the stands. If he had been looking for nothing more than a good final days matches at the Badminton World Championships,he must have gained a riveting measure of the Chinese domination of the game,as he stayed on to present medals to the mens and womens singles winners. But Chidambaram was aching to make a point,and by his almost casual attendance he made it well: India is safe for the sport competition it pledges to host. The brusque exit of Englands team last weekend,on the strength of media reports of a high security alert,had raised the issue,and it had to be settled.

It is not an issue on which nationalist points need,or should,be scored. In fact,there can be no full guarantees against terrorist incidents anywhere in the world. But in an imperfect world there exists a protocol on engaging meaningfully with host countries for confirming participation. Shortcutting that protocol to iterate suspicions as the England shuttlers did can create a sentiment about the security situation that can be deeply damaging. Chidambarams presence negated that sentiment. But the Hyderabad episode must be revisited more

extensively,especially after Mondays chief ministers conference on internal security nuanced the Centre-state issues in tackling Naxalite violence,terrorism and insurgency. Assertions were made about the need for revamping intelligence gathering for better preparedness. Security agencies and Central/ state governments,however,must also debate the systems by which public awareness is sought to be created about intelligence alerts. An impression has currently gained strength that security agencies randomly let out news of intelligence inputs on the possibility of terrorist plans as some kind of insurance cover. In any case,in todays understandably edgy environment,fears will inevitably be voiced. In keeping the peace,government has to factor this in while professing preparedness. Preparedness is also about creating public confidence.

The home minister did precisely that by dropping in,in as unofficial a manner as possible,for the badminton finals and complimenting the local police. But in a more routine way and at a more grassroots level,it needs to be done by local administrations,by adding informative depth while combating public apprehensions.