Terror alert fails to keep city at home

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Even days after the US warned India of possible terror attacks in the capital, the crowd at the most obvious targets seemed undeterred. While shoppers still thronged their favourite markets despite threats, we asked shopkeepers at some of the popular markets like Lajpat Nagar, Sarojini Nagar, Khan Market to check if terror threats had any affect on the footfall of customers visiting them.
Jogender, from Roshan Di Kulfi, in Karol Bagh says the footfall of people visiting the market gets affected every time there’s warning of a terror threat, but the effect is minuscule and is just for a few days. “The footfall goes down by 30 per cent. People do get a little cautious every time there’s news about it. But the effect lasts only for a day or two after the news, and on the weekends the crowd is normal despite the threats,” he says.
Charu from Big Chill in Khan Market says the footfall remains largely unaffected even after warnings of a terror attack. He says, “When there was a warning of a possible terror attack, there wasn’t much difference in the number of customers dropping in. But when there was a hoax bomb scare at Select CityWalk, there was much less crowd than on usual days, but the market was buzzing with people the next day.”
At other popular markets like Sarojini Nagar and Janpath, the crowd usually remains unaffected by warning of threats.
Says Jagdish, owner of a store in Sarojini Nagar, the number of people visiting these markets is seldom affected by threats. “Sarojini Nagar is always buzzing with people. Warnings don’t really deter people from shopping. You can’t expect people to sit at home because of the fear of a blast,” he says.
Suraj, a stall owner at Janpath, agrees and says, “At Janpath, there’s hardly any checking and it surprises me to see how people just don’t stop coming to this crowded market despite threats.”
And if you ask Delhiites, most of them feel that warnings have “become a part of their life”. “This doesn’t mean that we aren’t scared of warnings about terror attacks, but we can’t stop stepping out of the house on weekends for the fear of a blast. It is for the government to ensure that Delhiites are leading a safe life. These threats keep coming after every few months, but it doesn’t mean we sit at home waiting for something to happen,” says Sonia, a housewife.
Lohit, a DU student, says terror warnings don’t really stop him and his friends from going out. “When we read about terror threats in the newspaper, it scares us for a few seconds, we talk about it, and then we continue with our plans of going to Karol Bagh. We can’t be expected to sit at home, and wait for the government to announce that it’s all safe outside,” he adds.