26/11: In remembrance

November 26, 2008 would go down in history as a black day. Ten highly trained terrorists sailed their way into Mumbai and began a brutal massacre, killing nearly 200 people and injuring hundreds of others.

The nightmare continued for nearly three days as the terrorists focussed their destruction mainly in southern Mumbai. Sacrificing some of their own men, the Mumbai police and the NSG commandos were finally able to put these terrorists down, but by then, India had already suffered many casualties.

These terror attacks, the worst that India had ever seen, were condemned by the entire world. People mourned across the planet and participated in candle-light vigils in memory of those who lost their lives. Tens of thousands of people across the country poured onto the streets and held peace marches in a spontaneous show of solidarity with residents of terror-ravaged Mumbai.(AFP photo)

Posters and placards vividly captured the anger and concern as young and old, women and children thronged the iconic red sandstone Gateway to India opposite the Taj Mahal Hotel which along with Trident-Oberoi Hotel, Nariman House, cafe Leopold and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus Station bore the brunt of the terror attacks.(AFP photo)

A candle burns over messages placed in front of the Taj hotel in Mumbai on November 30, 2008 while security personnel stand guard as candle-lit memorials were held in front of the Taj hotel by Mumbaikars who came out to mourn the loss of their brothers and sisters.(AFP photo)

As dusk thickened at the Gateway of India, thousands of quivering points of light lit up the evening. Seven days after Mumbai had been bloodied by terror attacks whose ramifications spread beyond the borders of the country, a ravaged city came together at the very spot where the carnage had been unleashed in a show of support unparalleled in its scale in recent Indian history.(AFP photo)

People from all walks of life came to pay their respect to the ones who fell during the terror attacks at the historic Gateway of India. These activists lit up candles and held up placards urging the government to take strong measures to curb such attacks in future. After all, these attacks had highlighted the lack of coherence of India’s counter terrorism security.

There were spontaneous singings of the national anthem. People stood on dividers, on tops of cars or buses or vans. And mourners lit candles on the pavement and the road, turning a usually frenetic area of Mumbai into numerous mini-shrines for the dead.(AFP photo)

As seen in this photo, Karun and Nakul Agarwal walk with the photograph of their parents Sanjay and Rita Agarwal, during a candle light vigil outside the Oberoi Trident hotel. Their parents were amongst the victims killed in the dreadful attacks.(AFP photo)

A mourner lights a candle in front of a banner with names of a few of those killed in the recent attacks during a memorial in Mumbai on December 4, 2008. Parekh lost her son Sunil and daughter-in-law Reshma to the terror strike at the Oberoi Trident hotel. Anguish was soon turning into anger in Mumbai, just a week after the deadly militant attacks, as tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest against India's political leaders and police.

A tribute was paid to the police officials and commandos who lost their lives in the hands of terror. With every candle, a pledge was taken to raise voices against terror and crime.(AFP photo)

Shouting slogans, people gathered in Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, near Cubbon park in Bangalore, War Memorial in Secunderabad and at the Maidan and College street in Kolkata, Lucknow and Chennai. Even though Mumbai was the focal point, the roar of change could be heard across India.(AFP photo)

An Indian christian woman offers prayers during a multi-religious candle light vigil held in memory of the people who died in the Mumbai attacks in New Delhi on November 28, 2008.(AFP photo)

A week after terror struck the city, peace gatherings organised by several groups, including prominent citizens, are attracting large numbers of concerned Mumbaikars to the sites where the attacks were unleashed on unsuspecting victims claiming hundreds of lives and injuring several others. A tribute was paid to the police officials and commandos who lost their lives in the hands of terror. With every candle, a pledge was taken to raise voices against terror and crime. (AFP photo)

Tributes and remembrance events continue to take place across India in the wake of the attacks on Mumbai. As seen here in this picture, people lighting candles as they pay tribute to the victims of the Mumbai terror attacks outside the Raghunath Hindu Temple in Amritsar on December 9, 2008. (AFP photo)

Roadsides were lit up in Ahmedabad as well. People came out on the streets and displayed their respect. As seen in this picture, a physically challenged man lighting a candle, grieving at the loss of his fellow countrymen.(AFP photo)

The Indian Community in London organized a candle light vigil outside the High Commission of India today. The aim of the event was to show solidarity to the Mumbai attacks. Not only Indians, but people from other countries also participated.(AFP photo)

A man walks past candles placed before a poster bearing images of security forces personnel killed in the Mumbai attacks during a peace march in New Delhi on December 2, 2008. The march, one of at least three candle-lit memorials taking place in the Indian capital simultaneously, was held in memory of those killed in the mumbai attacks.(AFP photo)