Not taking any chances after the 26/11 terror strikes in Mumbai, multinational companies, embassies and UN bodies are independently reviewing security of luxury hotels before making reservations for their high-profile clients in India.
Security experts posted in embassies here and UN organisations are preparing similar reports to ensure maximum safety of their officials and guests.
"After the attack, especially on Trident and Taj hotels, many representatives, especially from Bangalore, came to check our security measures. Not just them but even officials from the US embassy, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other multilateral bodies conducted a similar survey in our hotel," said Akhil Mathur, spokesman of the Le Meridien hotel here.
"Many were concerned about exit routes in the event of an emergency and of the safety measures in place for guests in the hotel. Since we have paid enough attention and tightened our security further, they were pleased," Mathur added.
Industry and intelligence sources told IANS that this is the first time that security heads and representatives of various multinational organisations have undertaken such a task of preparing independent reports detailing "secure" and "safe" hotels across the country.
"One of the reasons why some high-profile guests or VIPs do not stay in the Oberoi or The Lalit is because their escape routes are not satisfactory. There is a flyover across the road which many consider an impediment in the event of an emergency," said a top hotelier.
Work is under way to prepare a list of luxury hotels where top corporate honchos who often travel to India for business meetings can be put up without risk to their lives.
"We took this painstaking exercise in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attack," a security head of an international bank, which has 3,000 employees on its rolls, told IANS.
"Fortunately our board of directors and senior management had left the Taj and the Oberoi hotels just minutes before the militants stormed the hotels and began firing indiscriminately."
On Nov 26, a 10-member suicide squad, allegedly belonging to the Lashker-e-Taiba, attacked the Taj Mahal Hotel near the landmark Gateway of India and the nearby Oberoi-Trident hotel among a host of other spots in south Mumbai.
At least 170 people, including 22 foreigners were killed. The hotels suffered extensive damage.
"Foreigners were obviously scared after the attacks. Some visiting India have gone the extra mile to do reconnaissance missions of hotels for sheer safety," said a UN official.
One particular security head working in an MNC, who did not wanted to be named, said he had personally visited and reviewed security of at least 40 hotels all across the country.
"During my visits, I checked their contingency plans and level of alertness. To my satisfaction I found each and every hotel either had hired security consultants or were in the process of hiring them."
Many hotels in the country are spending huge amounts to install state-of-the-art gadgets and hi-tech equipment for ramping up security in their premises.
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Choose a word with at least eight letters, numerals and special characters. Alternate between upper and lower case and then it becomes a user's basic password.
To make the password unique for each site, users should add the name of the website at the beginning or the end of the personalised password.
Bobby Jindal, Indian American governor of Louisiana, has been chosen to keynote the National Republican Congressional Committee's March fundraising dinner, fuelling speculation he may emerge as the party's presidential candidate in 2012.
"Bobby is a rising star and is a part of a new generation of leadership in our party," NRCC chairman Pete Sessions noted in an e-mail to supporters.
"He has a budding record of success, having implemented sound, common-sense business practices since he took office in 2007 and started rebuilding his great state."
The March 24 dinner will put Jindal in touch with big Washington donors as he puts his celebrity status to work for House Republicans. It's an event where former president George W. Bush has delivered the keynote address every year since he became the chief executive in 2000.
Another indication that Republicans may be looking at him as a potential candidate was that he has been picked up over Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who was defeated in the 2008 elections when she contested as party presidential candidate John McCain' vice presidential running mate.
An NRCC spokesman said Palin had not been asked to keynote the dinner.
"A darling of social conservatives and an emerging generation of Washington Republicans, Jindal's presence at such a high-profile dinner will set tongues wagging," the Politico, focusing on presidential politics, said.
The first-term Louisiana governor knows something about House races, having been elected to two terms in Congress before moving to the executive's office, it said.
"But it is Jindal's attractiveness to conservatives as a presidential contender that makes his appearance notable."
Jindal, for his part, has denied that he is in the running for the 2012 presidential elections saying he would concentrate on the development of Louisiana, which has been badly hit by the devastating hurricane Katrina a few years ago.
Jindal drew attention in December with a brief trip to keynote a conservative group's dinner in Iowa, which traditionally kicks off both parties' presidential nominating contests.
The party must rely on potential presidential candidates and prominent rising stars to compete with what has proven to be an overwhelming advantage for Democrats.
Other top party fundraisers who appeal to Republican donors include former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and several members of Congress.
Noted scientists G. Madhavan Nair and Anil Kakodkar, environmentalist Sunderlal Bahuguna and Missionaries of Charity head Sister Nirmala are among the 10 Indians conferred with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award.
The Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian award, has already been announced on November 4, 2008, for legendary Hindustani classical music vocalist Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, who is now 86.
President Pratibha Patil has approved the conferment of 133 Padma awards, among them 30 Padma Bhushans and 93 Padha Shris, an official statement said Sunday on the ev of Republic Day.
The Padma Bhushan is the country's third highest civilian award and the Padma Shri the fourth.
Among those on whom the Padma Bhushan will be conferred are educationist C.K. Prahlad, yesteryears' singer-actress Shamshad Begum, former bureaucrat S.K. Mishra, journalist Shekhar Gupta, historian Ramchandra Guha, author Isher Judge Ahluwalia, shooter Abhinav Bindra and techno-entrepreneur Sam Pitroda.
Among those named for the Padma Shri are Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, former star Helen, composer-musician Pandit Hridayanath Mangeshkar and singer Pinaz Masani, broadcaster Ameen Sayani, pathologist Arvind Lal, advocate Shyamla Pappu, social worker Bilkees Latif, Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and world billiards champion Pankaj Advani.
Four foreigners also figure in the list of awardees. They are Minoru Hara, Geshe Ngawang Samten and John Ralston Marr (literature and education) and Devayani Chaymotty (art).
The highest number of awards - 40 - are in the art category, followed by literature and education with 27, medicine with 19 and social work with 11. The other categories in which the awards have been given are science/engineering (9), trade/industry and public affairs (5 each), civil service (3) and journalism (2).
Former Karnataka governor Gavind Narain is among those to be conferred the Padma Vibhushan.
Among those honoued with the Padma Bhushan are Khalid Hameed (medicine), Lt. Gen. (retd) Satish Nambiar (national security affairs) and Kirit Shantilal Parikh (public affairs).
The list of Padma Shri conferees includes industrialist R.K. Krishna Kumar, actor Akshay Kumar, artists Aruna Sairam, Geeta Kapur and Hemi Bawa, singer Udit Narayan, journalist Abhay Chhajlani, writers Shashi Deshpande and Sunny Varkey and cricketer Harbhajan Singh.