Mumbai Will Bear Terrorist Scars for Many Years

Mumbai's international reputation as India's commercial capital, and the heart of its Bollywood film industry, will suffer a severe blow as a result of the attack on the city.

By targeting opulent, landmark buildings overlooking the Arabian Sea favored by foreign tourists and business travelers, the attackers will have calculated how to amplify the impact of their onslaught.

Among the first casualties of declining confidence may be the second Test match between India and England, scheduled for December 19, which is now in doubt.

Previous no-warning bomb attacks on Mumbai's infrastructure were the product of deep-rooted Hindu-Muslim communal violence. Blasts on commuter trains in 2006, for example, were primarily intended to exact revenge on the local population rather than to intimidate outsiders.

The latest terrorist violence, played out on international live TV networks and prolonged by the taking of hostages, should ensure that, for some time, Mumbai's name will be associated with Islamist atrocities.

The Foreign Office in London has updated its advice to warn Britons against all but essential travel to Mumbai until further notice. Anyone now in the city should "stay indoors until local authorities advise it is safe to go outside", it urges.

Previous travel warnings remain in force. "There is a high threat of terrorism throughout India," it says. "Attacks have targeted public places, including places of worship and major festivals such as Diwali. They have also targeted places frequented by expatriates and foreign travelers, most recently in Delhi, Ahmedabad and Bangalore."

Mumbai ? formerly Bombay ? has promoted itself as a vibrant, cultural tourist destination in recent years, feeding off the glamor of the Bollywood film industry and its phenomenal business success.

The Lonely Planet travel guide summarizes some of Mumbai's elements as: "One part Hollywood, six parts traffic, a bunch of rich power-moguls, half a dozen colonial relics, six heaped cups of poverty, a smattering of swish bars and restaurants, equal parts of mayhem and order, ancient bazaars, a handful of Hinduism and a dash of Islam."

Mumbai's prominence as a business center initially came from its port, which made it a gateway into the subcontinent. The expansion of trade helped the city develop into a major international financial center ? one of the world's top 10 in terms of scale of cash flows.

Many Indian multinationals and banks have their headquarters in the city. These increasingly affluent and powerful corporations have been seen as a significant driving force for global economic growth as European and American economies tip into recession.

Mumbai, with a population of 13 million, accounts for a quarter of India's industrial output, 40 per cent of its maritime trade and 70 per cent of capital transactions.

But many business travelers may now be reluctant to stay at the five-star, smoke-damaged Taj Mahal Hotel.

On the website of the besieged Oberoi Hotel, the management still boasts about eminent former guests including: "Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch, Jack Welch and the President of the United States of America as well as various heads of state". A 'situation update' adds: "Despite all efforts we are unable to make contact with the persons inside the hotel."