The document discusses security measures that hotels should take in the wake of the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks. It provides an overview of the new security challenges faced by the hotel industry and strategies hotels are implementing to improve security. These include installing security equipment like CCTV cameras and vehicle scanners, increasing the number of trained and armed security personnel, and improving security awareness training for all hotel staff. The key point discussed is that security is paramount for hotels and must be viewed as an important investment rather than just a cost.

1. January 2009 • Hotelier India www.hotelierindia.com
42 COVER STORY

2. Hotelier India • January 2009www.hotelierindia.com
COVER STORY 43
Mumbai’s terror attacks exposed at least two of India’s top hotels as
grossly lacking in the kind of security options so necessary in the 21st
century. In this special report we look at what hotels should be doing to
improve their security efforts and talk to key officers and intelligence
providers about the industry’s future in the terror era
The new
frontier
S
afety over business has be-
come the key mantra for In-
dian hospitality. This is vital
to ensure continued business,
even if at smaller volumes, since the
attacks on the Taj Mahal hotel and
the Oberoi in November last year.
“Security is like a parachute,” says
Rajiv Kaul, senior vice president,
Hotel Leelaventure: “Either it is
there 100% or it is not.”
Given that hotels, malls and res-
taurants are soft targets, what then
are the new frontiers for security?
“The trick is to be prepared for
all eventualities like the Americans.
Forecast, plan and prepare,” says
Mukesh Kumar, general manager at
the Ramada Palm Grove in Mum-
bai. Kumar was employed at the
American Embassy in New Delhi
during the 9/11 attacks.
It is also about understanding the
other side. “Terrorists have an attack
cycle,” says Fred Burton, vice presi-
dent,counterterrorismandcorporate
security at geopolitical intelligence
company Stratfor. “The Mumbai at-
tacks were meant for New York 15
years ago.” (See box)
Security isa feeling
How do you calculate the correct
balance between programmed ma-
chine intelligence and human in-
stinct? In the aftermath of Mumbai,
hotels have scrambled for anything
and everything that can offer extra
reassurance to their guests. Those
with the budgets are seriously con-
sidering high-end equipment such
as scanners for vehicles and plastic
explosives.
“Security is a feeling. We have
stopped taking soft steps. Guests feel
better when they can see what is be-
ing done,” says Kaul.
Checking is no longer cursory;
guards are more visible as are guns.
One of the first reactions in the
wake of the attacks was a spate of
applications for guns. The govern-
ment is making a rare concession
for certain hotel staff members to
adopt arms for security purposes.
Bangalore’s police chief conceded
Mumbaiattackswere planned for NewYork
On the surface, the Mumbai attack was remarkable for its execution and apparently
unconventional tactics. But when compared to a plot uncovered 15 years ago that
targeted prominent hotels in Manhattan, it becomes apparent that the Mumbai attack
was not so original after all.
In July 1993, US counterterrorism agents arrested eight individuals later convicted of
plotting an elaborate, multi-stage attack on key sites in Manhattan.The militants, who
were linked to Osama bin Laden’s then-relatively new group,Al Qaeda, planned to storm
the island armed with automatic rifles, grenades and improvised explosive devices. In
multiple raids on key targets combined with diversionary attacks, they aimed to kill as
many people as possible.
The planned attack, which came to be known as the ‘Landmarks’ plot, called for several
tactical teams to raid sites such as the Waldorf-Astoria, St Regis and UN Plaza hotels,
the Lincoln and Holland tunnels, and a midtown Manhattan waterfront heliport servicing
business executives and VIPs travelling from lower Manhattan to various New York-area
airports.The militants carried out extensive surveillance both inside and outside the
target hotels using human probes, hand-drawn maps and video surveillance. Detailed
notes were taken on the layout and design of the buildings, with stairwells, ballrooms,
security cameras and personnel.
Just because a plot has been disrupted, the threat has not been eliminated. Once ter-
rorists happen upon a successful model, they are likely to follow that model. Ultimately,
the biggest difference between the Landmarks plot and the Mumbai attack is that the
Mumbai attack succeeded. Gauging by the success of the Mumbai incident, we can
expect similar strategies and tactics in future attacks.
(This information has been provided by Stratfor,a geopolitical intelligence company based in
Texas,USA)

3. January 2009 • Hotelier India www.hotelierindia.com
44 COVER STORY
The FAQs of anti-terrorism
Scott Stewart, senior counterterrorism and security analyst at Stratfor, provides
some key answers on how to counter the terror threat
Where can we find the latest information on threats?
There are several organisations where hotel security managers can gather informa-
tion. One is the US State Department’s Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC)
www.osac.gov, the second is the British Security Information Service of Business
Overseas (SISBO) http://www.sisbo.org.uk/, the third is the International Security
Management Association (ISMA) http://www.isma.com/.
What should hotel security be most alert for?
Hotel security needs to focus on the most likely threats rather than fanciful things
like one sees in the movies or on TV. For example, you need to be more concerned
about a VBIED (Vehicle Born Improvised Explosive Device) attack or an armed as-
sault than you do an attack against your facility with a nuclear device.
How can hotels mitigate their risk?
There are several things. First, you can take standard precautions such as estab-
lishing a secure perimeter and screening vehicles before they are permitted to ap-
proach the hotel.The presence of the vehicle barriers at the Marriott in Islamabad
almost certainly saved many lives. Had that device gone off next to the building the
death toll would have been much higher. However beyond those standard proce-
dures, hotels can also become proactive by employing counter-surveillance teams
to watch for signs of hostile surveillance. Counter surveillance allows you to pick up
on plots in the planning stage and it is far easier to thwart a plot at that stage than
it is when the attack has been launched and the VBIED or assault team is rolling
up to the front door.
Terrorism operates in cycles. What can we expect next?
There are different cycles involved in terrorism. There is the ‘attack planning cycle’
that encompasses the steps required to conduct a particular attack.This cycle
includes things like pre-operational planning, target selection, deployment, attack
and escape or exploitation.
There is also an ‘operational cycle’ that reflects the capacity of a particular group
to conduct attacks. For low-scale attacks, this cycle can be quite rapid - the
operational cycle of Al Qaeda in Iraq is pretty quick.They can conduct another
attack pretty quickly on the heels of another one. Some other groups may require
more time to plan and launch follow-on attacks.This cycle can also vary by group
over time. For example, the group Jemaah Islamiyah in Indonesia was conducting
major attacks on an operational cycle of approximately one year in the early parts
of this decade. But the Indonesian authorities have greatly impacted their ability to
operate and the group has not been able to launch a major attack for several years
now.
If we are talking about operational cycles, the good news is that the LeT (if they
were indeed the authors of the Mumbai attacks) have not show the ability to have
a rapid operational cycle equivalent to al Qaeda in Iraq. It takes them a long time
to plan and implement serious attacks in India.The Students Islamic Movement of
India/Indian Mujahideen group seems to have a much quicker operational cycle for
their low-level bombing campaigns, but such campaigns require far less planning
and training than the Mumbai attacks.
What security procedures and products should all hotels have?
As noted above, equipment to establish perimeters and control access is critical.
However there is a tendency to allow equipment to provide a false sense of secu-
rity. That is why procedures and training are also critical. Even the best equipment
in the world is no good if the people manning it don’t know how to use it or if they
do not follow proper procedures.The most important equipment you have is your
people and not just the security team. Security awareness needs to be established
in every part of the hotel team from the bellboys and housekeepers to the garden-
ers and kitchen help.They need to be taught what to look for and who to report
suspicious things to.
this to the hotelier delegation which
brought it up in a security review
meeting after the attacks.
Not everybody though wants
to be armed to the teeth. While
agreeing to the deterrent value of a
gun, Kaul is extremely sceptical of
having live arms on the property.
“There are a lot of risks involved.
Machines fail. These weapons can
be used for the wrong reason and
even against us, not necessarily by
terrorists always,” he says.
Skilled manpower then takes on
a whole new meaning, with train-
ing even more vital. The general
demand is for commandos and those
with military service. Cost aside, se-
curity agencies are hard pressed to
provide them simply because they
have always been in short supply.
An ex-commando also comes with a
price tag of Rs50,000 a month.
A long-silenced school of thought
feels that security is not just people
manning the gates. The average se-
curityguardisunder-educated,ill-in-
formed, under-paid and outsourced;
in short, not very motivated. If the
hotel is to be a secure environment,
the onus lies with the hotel’s staff.
Training employees in basic security
procedures such as risk assessment,
situation analysis and emergency
protocols is a very effective safety
net. Al Qaeda’s Landmarks plan, in
which it planned something similar
to what happened in Mumbai for
New York 15 years ago, failed be-
cause alert officers recognised the
signs in time.
“Security isa
feeling.We have
stoppedtak-
ing soft steps.
Guests feel bet-
terwhenthey
can seewhat is
being done”
Security in hotels across the country has been beefed up

4. Hotelier India • January 2009www.hotelierindia.com
COVER STORY 45
“My idea of working is to groom
each and every employee to be a vig-
ilance officer. If I succeed, then we
would have 600 eyes and 600 hands
to work with,” says Hemant Jaggi,
director of security, The Claridges,
New Delhi.
No price for safety
The security industry is doing brisk
business since the attack. CCTV
and metal detectors have come in to
their own, as has the baggage X-Ray
scanner, one of the most in-demand
pieces of machinery in the hospital-
ity and retail industries today. A me-
dium sized scanner is priced at Rs18
lakh.
Price though continues to be an is-
sue for some much against the wish-
es of security experts such as Jaggi.
“In developed countries, all hotels,
hospitals and shopping malls have
a CCTV network setup and few
cameras out of that setup also have
live connectivity to the police control
room. Unfortunately, we in India in-
stall technology which is available at
the lowest cost not considering the
consequences thereof,” he says.
The vehicle scanner will cost
Leela Rs80 lakh, under the EPCG
scheme. All their hotels will have
one each. All ITC hotels will also
have such a machine and a special
plastic explosives scanner imported
from Russia.
Other in-demand products in-
clude the camera and the metal de-
tector. The number of CCTV camer-
as in a 120-room urban hotel can hit
50, most of course at access points.
Many just cannot have enough. In-
fra-red and night vision cameras are
now a norm for low-lit areas and
night-time monitoring. Discretion is
still important though. Hence cam-
eras that are small but that tilt, pan,
rotate and zoom are preferred.
Leopold moves on
By opening on December 1, Leopold Café becomes a global icon against terror
It took just five days for the 137 year old Leopold Café in Colaba, Mumbai to re-open.
The Jehani brothers – Farhang and Farzad – manage the family business which
has seen everything India has had to offer, including Independence and the hippie
culture.
Nothing prepared them for what happened on November 26.“Two gunmen were not
eating in the restaurant as was reported.They stood outside for a few minutes talking
on their phones. Once done, one of them removed a grenade from his hip belt and
lobbed it into the restaurant.They then went behind the juice counter, removed their
guns from their rucksack and opened fire. It was all over in minutes,” says Farzad who
has no answers to why Leopold was chosen.
It is helpful that Leopold is a corner café and has three entrance-exits. It made evacu-
ation much faster which minimised casualties. One of the two staff killed was some
distance away in the bye-lane outside the restaurant. He escaped the initial attack,
though the gunmen shot him down on their way to the Taj.Young Hidayatulla Kazi and
Peer Pasha have been working at Leopold for 18 years.
Peer Pasha’s brother, Chand Pasha’s coming back to work is characteristic of the
spirit on which the world has rallied around Leopold.The brothers worked alongside
for 18 years. Leopold’s, or Leo’s as many know it, was already famous the world over.
The outpouring of support, even from those who have never visit Leopold has reaf-
firmed the Jehani brothers’ decision to open as soon as possible. Cards, emails, SMS
messages and calls flowed daily. People come by with flowers, light candles at the en-
trance and even request to meet the families of the two deceased members. Sales of
T-shirts, mugs and other Leopold memorabilia have sky-rocketed.The employee fund
box is overflowing with donations. Most importantly, Leopold is full through the day.
“We opened to prove that terrorists cannot win,” says Farzad who is congratulated and
hugged at least five times an hour.
As is the staff who came back to make a point. Each employee is covered under the
government run ESIC health and insurance programme.This has taken care of the
medical bills of those injured as well.“The ESIC people contacted us themselves and
have taken care of all medical requirements.Their documentation helped in speedy
payments from the various relief funds announced by the administration,” says Jehani.
Insurance cover for property damage has been limited as it is a leased site.
Since the attacks, Leopold has installed a number of CCTV cameras at entrances and
other vantage points.“It is the best we can do for now,” admits Farzad,“which is good
only for monitoring and not much else.”
There are plans however to post armed guards.“Beyond that in an attack like this,
what can one do?” he asks.
It is not that there was not recourse. Farzad is an armed restaurateur. He has owned
a licensed Smith & Wesson .32 calibre revolver since 1984, though does not carry
it regularly and did not on November 26. It is now in a locker onsite, but he will still
not carry it everywhere.“Carrying a gun can lead to an unnecessary escalation.There
is always a lot of people in the restaurant. I want to avoid this risk and keep a cool
head,” says Farzad.
“lookat secu-
rityasan invest-
ment,nota cost”
Armed security personnel man a hotel’s gates

5. January 2009 • Hotelier India www.hotelierindia.com
46 COVER STORY
Armed and
responsible
Hotels may be keen to arm their security
staff given recent events. But gun use is
not to be sanctioned lightly, says Pirooz
Balsara, chief security manager, The Leela
Kempinski, Mumbai
A firearm is a dangerous weapon. In the
wrong or untrained hands, it can cause far
more harm than good.
But just as a hammer cannot hit a nail without a human wielding the hammer; a
firearm cannot kill you without someone pulling the trigger. Guns do not kill people;
people kill people.The individual is licensed along with the weapon.
Gun ownership carries with it a terrible responsibility. Only you can decide if you
are willing and able to accept that responsibility. Before you make the decision to
carry a gun, you must understand the legal ramifications that come with gun owner-
ship and use. Understand that the possibility of ever having to use a firearm for
self-defence is very remote and that if you ever do, you will probably find yourself
facing criminal prosecution to prove you were justified in your actions. You can be
completely in the right and still face a prison sentence and years of legal battles
and expensive fees.
Be aware also that the emotional impact of using deadly force will stay with you
the rest of your life.Are you willing and able to shoulder that responsibility?
Carry a gun and allow your staff to carry guns only if you are completely aware of
the consequences of using or even possessing a firearm and are completely willing to
deal with those consequences.
Nobody should own a firearm unless they are well trained in its safe handling, as
well as the circumstances where it can be legally used for defence. Having a firearm
carries serious responsibilities. Make sure that it is unloaded and locked away out of
sight when not carried on your person.
The first rule of firearm ownership is safety, the second is discretion. Nobody has
to know you have a gun, and the fewer who do, the better. Never display your weapon
except when you feel a real threat to your life or safety.
Being a hero looks good in the movies, but getting stomped, or worse, is no fun
in real life.Whatever you do, do not get into an armed confrontation.There is not a
material thing in this world worth a human life.The only time I would consider using
deadly force is when somebody is actually attacking me or directly threatening my life
or of someone else’s.
Whatever you decide, if you do feel the need for a weapon, do your homework first.
And if worst comes to absolute worst, and you find yourself reaching for your firearm,
first ask yourself if there is any way to avoid its use. If there is, choose the alternative.
For more information see the Indian Arms Act, 1959: http://www.gunaccessory.
com/laws/arms_act.htm
Risk and Responsibility
n Understand and respect that guns,ALWAYS, are lethal instruments
n Know the characteristics of the firearm you are handling
n Presume any gun you pick up or are handed is loaded
n Always keep a gun pointed in a safe direction
n Always keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire
n Use any mechanical safety but never rely on it
n Never point any gun at anyone unless you have to use it
n Know your target and what is behind it
n Make sure unattended or stored guns are unloaded and not accessible to others
n Keep firearms well maintained and free from obstructions
n Alcohol, drugs and guns are a deadly combination. Never consume anything that
would even mildly impair your judgment or physical coordination when you are carry-
ing/using your firearm
Storage of camera feed is a long
standing and cumbersome issue.
WAN-enabled cameras solve this
by compressing the heavy feed to
small data packets and transmitting
it over the Internet to a centralised
storage area. This allows for more
recordings to be kept for longer and
even viewed at a remote location by
experts if required.
The absolute latest in surveillance
camera technology is being Wi-Fi
enabled. These small, near range,
basic cameras transmit their feed via
the local Wi-Fi hub common in all
hotels. They are extremely portable
and are ideal for temporary, non-
conventional requirements such as
conferences, events and work super-
vision.
Intelligent security
The true value of CCTV monitoring
and other data stored is only realised
when the footage is analysed. This
entails tangential, but no less im-
portant aspects of security analysis:
services such as audits, profiling and
analysis.
“The first thing one should do is
to audit the current practice for risk
“Thetrick isto
be prepared for
all eventualities
liketheAmeri-
cans.Forecast,
planand
prePare”
Metal detectors are now a standard feature in all hotels

6. Hotelier India • January 2009www.hotelierindia.com
COVER STORY 47
Nothing
mysterious in
security
Housekeeping staff, informed and
trained through rigorous security audits,
should be a key weapon in the security
battle, says Gustavo Cavaliere
The term mystery shopping has become
quite prevalent today.The principal reason
hotels use mystery shopping companies is to measure employee behaviour, productivity
and customer service skills during day-to-day business interactions.
After the mystery shopper has concluded, general managers get a load of stan-
dardised forms with the results of the shoppers’ findings. Most of the time the results
provide nothing new, giving them few opportunities for improvement.
The worst part of this scenario is the person who performs the mystery shopper audit.
Usually, the task is performed by an underpaid person, recruited by a mystery shopping
company, who gets a nice two-day vacation with free meals and who has little knowl-
edge or experience of the hospitality industry or of the demands of regular travellers.
Unfortunately this is not appropriate if performing similar mystery shopper checks
where security is concerned.And mystery security checks, or security audits, could, and
should, be a hugely informative tool in the fight for better hotel safety.
An effective mystery shopping programme, when performed by experts in the hospi-
tality industry, will create a higher level of consciousness in the whole staff and should
give them the necessary tools to perform prevention security audits.
A security audit should be one that exposes the hotel’s vulnerable areas, designs a
customised system to overcome the situation and provides accurate training to all staff.
Last year, once again, the hospitality industry faced a dire situation; a terrorist at-
tack that led to the loss of guest and employee lives, destruction of the property and
financial damage. Islambad and Mumbai among other previous attacks have shown
us the capacity, aptitude and astuteness that terrorists have.The industry needs now to
adapt in kind.
So how can hotels prevent attacks?
To start, all general managers must be aware that a situation like this could happen
to their property, wherever it is in the world, with no exceptions.Then they should make
the decision to do something about this. Prevention is the key word.
A preventive approach leads to training techniques and should not be only for secu-
rity staff.This should involve all the hotel staff, especially the housekeeping department.
I believe that the housekeeping department of all luxury hotels plays a very
significant role in the prevention of any terrorist attack. Based on my experience and
worldwide inspections, general managers are not aware that the housekeeping staff is
their direct and most significant asset against any strike.
You also need to change with the times.
The hospitality industry has changed very fast.Traditional hotel mystery shopping
techniques are not only obsolete and useless but expensive. It is time that general man-
agers direct their focus and efforts to other kinds of inspection techniques if they want a
safer property.The lives of many people depend on their correct decision.
Also, use your imagination. In the middle of the present and clear danger of a terror-
ist attack, thinking outside the box could make a big difference and avoid disaster.
The formula is simple; awareness, evaluation, prevention and training.As an example,
just ask any of your employees if they know what Semtex is, or TATP or TCAP, and what
kind of damage 40 grams of this material could do; what tungsten ball bearings are and
what kind of injury 10 milligrams of VX nerve gas dispersed in a hotel room could cause.
Then ask yourself if the current mystery shopper programme and training techniques
used by your property are adequate, and if they should be updated.
Gustavo Cavaliere is the CEO and executive director of The Feedback Company.
It specialises in assisting luxury hotels, airlines, cruises and resort management
companies recognise their vulnerability.
www.thefeedbackcompany.org
levels and threat perceptions. Then
look at security as an investment,
not a cost,” says Dr. Diwan Rahul
Nanda, global chairman and man-
aging director at security services
company Topsgrup.
As the Americans have learnt, se-
curity is more about prevention than
reaction. So translating all data into
usable business intelligence is critical
to the process. Camera recordings
can be analysed for suspicious move-
ments and even body language. This
is being done real-time in airports
across America, Europe and even
India. A specialised security officer
reviews live feed from a camera stra-
tegically placed behind the immigra-
tion desk. Suspicious behaviour such
as fidgeting or wrong answers is im-
mediately red-flagged and acted on.
The same can apply to a hotel front
desk.
Data from access cards such as
room keys also tell a story. RFID
cards store detailed information of
all the areas in which it was used.
“Guest attempts to access restricted
areas such as other rooms, floors
and even service areas can be red-
flagged,” says Ashish Kapoor, busi-
ness head, hospitality at Hafele
India, a supplier of access control
systems and other fittings.
Patterns eventually emerge which
can provide strong cases for action.
CCTVs also work closely with pe-
rimeter security. In case someone
manages to breach the perimeter, a
highly sensitive cable buried along
the perimeter detects the seismic
activity caused due to the sudden
jump and trigger the alarm. Here,
cameras like Enkay’s PTZ type
working in conjunction with the
buried cable intrusion detection
system can record activity in the
breached area. Newer technology
is already underway where cameras
can identify a person’s face and si-
multaneously track him across the
property. Meanwhile, cameras may
soon talk to RFID-embedded keys
and other equipment to track sub-
jects.
Taking part in an intelligence
network is essential. Since not all
threats are from international ter-
rorists, close co-ordination with the
local police is also helpful.
Private intelligence networks such
as Stratfor, Kroll and Topsgrup of-
fer other sources of intelligence that
can help minimise risk and reassure
guests. HI
“Taking part in
an intelligence
network is es-
sential.Since
notallthreats
are from inter-
nationalterror-
ists,close co-
ordinationwith
the local police
isalso helpful”