by AJAY
As the two dams and other smaller ones collapsed, the major cities of Las Vegas, Phoenix and Los Angeles were immediately wiped out from the face of the earth. Many other stunning places like Flagstaff, Williams and Grand Canyon National Park became bogs of mud and broken steel. Several picturesque places in the downstream like Tusayan, Cameron, Navajo, Hopi, Laughlin, Yuma, Needles and Blythe became ghost towns, swimming in the murky waters.
Electricity supply to these places was cutoff since the hydro power station and transmission lines were all gone. Roadways, rail lines and airports from where the emergency service could be provided went underwater. Even hospitals and food warehouses got submerged.
The agony created in the aftermath continued not only for years, but many decades. The Imperial Valley of Southern California remained under floodwater as if forever. Massive boulders and gravel were carried to faraway farmlands and totally covered the fertile land, rendering it barren. The surging water stripped off the arable land, making it unfit for farming for many generations to come. The cost of rebuilding these dams came out to be more than fifty billion dollars and the overall cost of destruction was worked out to several trillion dollars. America could never be the same again.
In fact, we also studied a report of an organization called Living Rivers, which wanted to drain the Lake Powell to save America from this 'to be catastrophe'. However, the US District Court of Utah did not permit the organization to pursue further studies."
Aban fell silent. His account knocked the wind out of Siddhartha's lungs. He asked Aban, "But how can your project have a connection with Tupac-II?"
"When we completed the mathematical modeling and computer simulation of the project, it was considered the best project ever presented by undergraduate students in any engineering school of the United States. Our professor sent it to the United States Geological Survey and the Lower Colorado Valley Authority for their comments and feedback. In the meantime, I went to Lahore for my Christmas vacation. I told Abba about our project on Christmas Day. He asked me to show the simulation and when I did, he patted me on my back, and asked me to save the file in his computer hard disk. I did just that."After a pregnant pause, Aban said under his breath, "I think he used our project to simulate Tupac-II."
"How can you say that?"
"Today is Christmas day again and it just came to me. I hope it's only a wild hunch, but if Abba has shown the simulation to the LeT or JeM, those ideas would definitely have bred other ideas."
Siddhartha held his head in his hands. "What happened to the comments and feedback of USGC and LCVA?"
"When I went back to my engineering school after vacation, I got to know that the U.S. government had classified our project as top-secret on the recommendation of both authorities."
"Why?"
"The government could not risk that people believe a plausible, scientifically proven doomsday."
Customs Officer
A day after Christmas, the Custom Appraiser officer of Mumbai CST Airport Cargo section was still in a festive mood. He planned to clear the backlog only in the coming New Year. He ordered his inspectors to clear the current consignments and leave the pending ones for the following week.
With a bored look, he turned to the late evening edition of the newspaper. His eyes widened when he saw an article' 'Al Qaeda attempt to blow up an American plane averted.'
By our Bureau
25th December 2009
On Christmas Day 2009, a Nigerian born American citizen, Mr. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, boarded a Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit. He had purchased his ticket in cash in Ghana on December 16. Two eyewitnesses testified live on CNN that they had witnessed a smartly dressed Indian male' with Abdulmutallab near the plane.
Aboard the flight, Abdulmutallab spent twenty long minutes in the bathroom as it approached Detroit. When he returned to his seat, he covered himself with a blanket. A few passengers clearly heard popping noises and smelt a foul odour. His co-passenger watched in horror as Abdulmutallab's trousers caught fire. The fire threatened to spread to the walls of the plane. A Dutch film director leaped on Abdulmutallab and subdued him. In the meantime, flight attendants used fire extinguishers to douse the flames. The steward took Abdulmutallab to the front of the airplane cabin. When the steward asked him what he had in his pocket, he replied, "Explosive device."The device consisted of a six-inch packet that was sewn into his underwear containing the explosive plastic powder PETN.
The Customs officer racked his brains, "This seems to be similar to something that I encountered a few days back."The words "underwear"and "plastics"suddenly coalesced in his mind. He called the duty inspector. "Do we have something in our terminal that has to do with plastics and underwear?"he wanted to confirm.
"Yes sir. A consignment is still with me for determining customs duty valuation. The product description is 'Plastic material for manufacturing undergarments'."
Horror stricken, the Customs officer yelled, "For god's sake, bring it here quickly."
Stones and Waves
There was nothing that Aban or Siddhartha Rana could do except look for some more leads. Tupac-II and the Dam certainly seemed like a very plausible connection, but it was still not enough for Siddhartha to reach a definite conclusion. Even the conversation between Hafiz Saeed and Aban and Imran Shah Malik's claim about his watch was not conclusive proof.
Siddhartha had already sent the image file of Túpac Amaru II to the National Security Agency in the USA for cryptanalysis. The NSA tried its best with its programs: Enigma, Brute Force Key-space Search, but without success. Siddhartha then sent it to a few other centres: the Government Communications Headquarters of Great Britain, the Canada Communications Security Establishment, the Defense Signals Directorate of Australia and Department of Information Technology of India. All of them failed and a few even said that it contained some hexadecimal or binary garbage, which was not worth trying.
Siddhartha got Imran Shah Malik's watch x-rayed from different angles. He did not open it as Aban's uncle had mentioned that forcibly cracking it open would cause the acid vial to destroy the chip inside the watch. He showed the watch and its x-ray films to watchmakers, distributors, retail sellers, collectors, and even persons claiming to be connoisseurs and experts. Some said that they could not say anything without opening the watch. However, they all agreed that the x-ray film did not show any unusual component in the automatic watch.
Frustrated, Siddhartha asked Aban to take a short holiday instead of hanging around the IB office. He also asked Aban to stay close by, so that he could come to the office if required.
On New Year's Day, Juhi and Aban left for Ajmer by the early morning Shatabadi Express. After offering prayers at the Dargāh, Aban expressed his desire to go to Pushkar Lake. Juhi was surprised. Aban recounted the story that his Ammi had told him about the magical charm of Lord Brahma, the Creator.
Both came out of the temple and descended the fifty-two steps of the Kund to touch the holy water. A Panda, the priest, who stood waist-deep in the water, rotating with hands folded, seemingly rapt in prayer, suddenly sprang into a different kind of action. He ambushed Juhi and Aban, quickly threw his own angocha, the cotton towel that hung around his neck, on the grounds of the ghat. He instructed Juhi and Aban to sit on it and rapidly began to chant mantras, applied tilak and tied a thread around Juhi and Aban's wrists all in such rapid succession that neither of the two friends could utter a word. Before they knew it, the Panda blessed them predicting a future together, a brood of four children and a long and happy married life. Even before his 'prediction' was complete, he demanded five hundred and one rupees for the ceremony. An open-mouthed Aban handed him the money as though in a trance.
Shaken and comforted at the same time by the strange episode at the ghat, Juhi and Aban settled down on a bench beside the lake.
"To love is to receive a glimpse of heaven," Juhi muttered as if in trance. "Love is portion of the soul itself, like the celestial bre
athing of the atmosphere of paradise."
A couple of kids were throwing pebbles into the water and playing. "Look at the ripples I have created."One of the kids hopped and jumped with joy.
His younger brother lifted a bigger stone and threw it into the lake. "Look, I have destroyed yours."
Juhi smiled while Aban kept thinking, "Can a huge wave or ripple be destroyed?"He continued staring at the ripples till they disappeared.
Submarine Parts
An agent went to the Russian submarine maker and took delivery of two of the machines and the manual for reassembly. The first submarine was transported by Rossiya Airlines cargo flight from Pullover Airport, St. Petersburg to Dushanbe in Tajikistan. It was further transported by truck till it reached Wakhan Corridor at the Durand line, touching the northern border of Pakistan. The Pakhtun Tribal Chief of Pakistan had contacts with all the tribal chiefs of Tajikistan and Afghanistan. He made sure that the submarine was transferred safely to its destination in Pakistan.
A few days later, Shalim Amār Khan visited the same person. He got the second submarine knocked-down into four different parts: Hull, Propulsion, remote navigation system and Robotic module. Two parts were booked from St. Petersburg to Kolkata and Goa in India. The other two parts were destined for Kochi and Chennai from Moscow.
All the consignments reached the respective destinations safely. The different bits and pieces were transported from all four places to a small warehouse near Mazagaon dock in Mumbai. A retired marine engineer read the manual and assured Shalim Amār Khan that he could assemble the product within a week's notice.
"What if we want you to assemble it at our location?"
"I'll charge more. However, I need a small workshop in case some component needs refurbishing."
"Done. We'll book your train ticket."
Headley again
David Coleman Headley was charged with conspiracy to bomb different targets in Mumbai, and of providing support to the LeT. After three months in FBI custody, Headley pleaded guilty and promised to cooperate with the U.S. authorities. He signed a few documents, wherein he accused the LeT and HuJI, Pakistan-based terrorist organizations with links to the al Qaeda of perpetrating the Mumbai attacks. These papers were later submitted in the Chicago court.
The American government shared the information with their Indian counterpart.
A Jihadist, Headley admitted that he had reported to Major Iqbal and Sameer Ali, both serving Pakistani ISI officers. The officers, in turn, were closely associated with Abul al Qama, a dreaded LeT operative. Abu Qahafa and a Lashkar member 'D', who was perhaps Saifullah Muzzamil, were Headley's other links to the underground world of the terrorist-ISI nexus.
Major Iqbal introduced Headley to higher-ups in ISI. One of them was an enigmatic Major Hamza, a major operator. No one could trace Major Hamza, since he had been promoted from the Army to the ISI and the Army promptly listed him as having retired from its cadre role, and removed all his antecedents.
His junior, Major Iqbal provided twenty-five thousand dollars and counterfeit Indian rupees to Headley to start an office, namely 'First World', in Mumbai and also to meet the expenses of his scouting trips to different parts of India. On the streets of Lahore, Major Iqbal imparted training to him about the art of effective and scientific intelligence: how to create sources and when to discard a rogue agent; how to take cover or come out in the open to mix with the crowd; when to work alone and when to involve others. They also trained him in martial arts and unarmed close quarter combat.
Headley accepted that he had started off as a LeT recruit, but drifted towards the al Qaeda. He told the interrogators that he had continued to stay in touch with LeT members after the Mumbai attack. He was told by the ISI that he should never speak about the involvement of any ISI officer. After the attack, he removed all incriminating material from his home in Pakistan at the behest of the ISI.
He also claimed to have made contact with the members of al Qaeda in his two trips to North Pakistan. His most damning account was about an Army officer, who worked with Headley and was very close to Ilyas Kashmiri, number three in the al Qaeda hierarchy. The Mumbai attacks were financed and supported by ISI. ISI officials handled every important LeT member. ISI was also close to al Qaeda.
The ISI-LeT-al Qaeda nexus now lay exposed before the world.
Headley further stated that he had undertaken multiple trips to India before and after the Mumbai attack. He had also visited a hill station in the Himalayas, the National Defence College in Delhi, and Chabad Houses in many cities of India for carrying out surveillance needed for future attacks.
He claimed that a top LeT commander recruited Ishrat Jahan as a fidayeen to assassinate the Chief Minister of Gujarat. However, the Gujarat police gunned her down.
A few months later, a bomb was detonated in a popular German Bakery, near a Chabad House in Pune, a city close to Mumbai. The explosion in one of the most cosmopolitan and upmarket areas of Pune left many dead and several severely injured.
Siddhartha analyzed each fact minutely. A few patterns seemed to emerge. The LeT was trying to attack high profile targets. They were choosing places, which drew maximum media attention. They wanted to kill the Chief Minister of an important state. Mumbai and Gujarat seemed to be interconnected. al Qaeda seemed to be the new link, but without much substantial evidence, Siddhartha could not go further. He tried to find an answer to the Tupac-II puzzle, using information from these new revelations.
Crest Telefilms
Shalim Amār Khan visited the owner of CTEL, Crest Telefilms Entertainment Ltd in Mumbai a few times to oversee the progress of the television documentary script. Each time he watched the film, he rejected it, pointing out some defect in the frames or sound. He wanted everything to be perfect.
After a long ordeal of more than a year, Shalim Amār Khan finally approved it. The assured payment was made to the owner of CTEL and the film changed hands.
Back in Dubai, one evening Shalim Amār Khan sat on his Mac Pro and checked the uncompressed wave files of a presenter describing a Megaflood. He noted intently every detail: the reporters giving their accounts of the flood from different locations, the sound of gurgling water, the cries of people and the aftermath of the destruction. He spent ten days mixing the files on the blank soundtrack, to finally create the finished product.
The first two minutes consisted of a video of Shalim Amār Khan's voice and a motion picture in which he emerged in the backdrop of a beautiful lake. When the camera panned and zoomed in, the background image dissolved and viewers could only see the probing eyes and the steady head of Shalim Amār Khan, and hear the resonant voice in which he spoke. Then with a slight tilt of head, he spoke in a very polite voice, "Aadab, Mr. Prime Minister and the honourable members …"
However, this documentary had to wait, till the final moment arrived. Some more tweaking and cleaning was required. He improved the final product several times and smothered out every single rise and fall in the amplitude of the sound, trimmed all unwanted video frames and synchronized the video with the audio many times over.
When he finally ran the video file, he was sure that no one in this world could say that it was not a prerelease of a live commentary.
Garudeshwar
Siddhartha got a call from the Mumbai Intelligence Bureau, "Sir, a month back, we got information from the Department of Customs in Mumbai about an unclaimed consignment from Port Said, Egypt. The product description was 'Plastic material for manufacturing undergarments'. The Customs Appraiser officer became suspicious and he called the Mumbai police to examine it. After verification, the explosives experts were also called in. They found that it was a plastic explosive."
"What kind of plastic explosive?"
"Semtex."
"Any detection signature?"
"None. It has no taggant agent."
"What variant is it?"
"1A."
"Oh! This variant has a wide temperature range, is malleable and can be
used in any condition: from land to water,"After a pause, Siddhartha asked," Where was the consignment bound for?"
"A shop in Garudeshwar in Gujarat."
"Where is Garudeshwar?"
"A few miles west of the Sardar Sarovar Dam."
"Did you make an enquiry at the shop?"
"There is no such shop at the intended place."
"Any enquiry in Egypt?"
"We contacted Mukhabarat, the Egyptian counter terrorism intelligence service. They tried their best, but could not find anything."
"How much is the semtex?"
"Five hundred kilograms."
"Oh God! It's sufficient to bring down an entire neighbourhood."
"Yes, sir."
"However, what is interesting is where the product was bound for."
"But Garudeshwar is a very small and peaceful village. As per our local intelligence, there is nothing in the town that can suggest any link to terror."
"Not Garudeshwar. The target is Sardar Sarovar Dam!"
Trichi Mir
An al Qaeda agent reached the film studio in the timber market, Ravi Road, Lahore. The master-mixer was waiting for him. He powered on his old projector and ran the film. The agent nodded, as it was absolutely flawless. The master-mixer had also made a DVD of the film. The agent grabbed both and presented a basket of mangoes to the master-mixer.
The agent came out of the timber market and turned his Toyota right. As soon as he reached the iconic Minar-e-Pakistan, a big blast from behind attracted the attention of many people sitting in the park. The agent ignored the sound, took a U-turn, crossed the Ravi Bridge and sped on to the Grand Trunk Road.