Mumbai: In the aftermath of the recent Colombo blasts, the Mumbai Police has instructed the Archdiocese of Bombay to undertake immediate security audits of the churches and put in place enough security measures on a proactive basis to ward off any untoward incident.
The Mount Mary church of Bandra and St. Michael’s Church of Mahim are high on security priorities as they are the most important churches and tourist landmarks in the city. These churches attract a large number of visitors from all communities throughout the year.
When The Free Press Journal carried out a reality check on Wednesday, which was a holiday and there were large numbers of visitors at these churches, it did not find adequate security around these establishments despite the recommendations of the Mumbai Police.
At the Mount Mary’s Church, there was a small police picket outside the main gate whereas other gates did not have any security whatsoever. The security staff did not check the visitors entering the premises either manually or with hand-held metal detectors.
Though some church officials maintained that enough security arrangements will be put in place soon, one of the security personnel on the spot informed that the premise was under complete security cover.
“We are still in the process of finalising the arrangements as we are scrutinizing the service of various security agencies recommended by the Mumbai Police,” said Father Michael, head parish of the Mount Basilica. He further informed that though Mumbai Police has assured cooperation in every aspect, the churches are planning to have their own security mechanism.
At St. Michael’s Church at Mahim, the situation was no different on Wednesday afternoon as people from various parts of the city kept pouring in for the Novena prayers but there was no strict security at or around the premises. There was neither any metal detector, nor any security personnel inspecting the visitors at the main gate.
The Archbishop’s office informed that adequate security has been deployed at the Colaba Cathedral, the seat of Archdiocese of Bombay, and the process of adequate security deployment in all the churches will take some time as they have informed the parishes, who are expected to take individual responsibilities for their protection.
“We are going through a systematic security audit and the Mumbai Police has been guiding us. Though we can’t assure any deadline for the completion of the security arrangement, we hope to finish the process soon,” said Father Nigel Barret, one of the spokespersons of Archdiocese’s office and the Catholic Communication Centre.
