MADRAS, India -- A day after maximum terror struck India's financial capital, Bombay, the city of 17 million people was back on its feet. Even London took four days after last July's explosions to get over the shock and trauma.

On July 11, a series of seven bombs ripped apart Bombay's suburban railway coaches and platforms in different places during the peak of the evening rush hour, killing about 200 people and injuring 700. But the next day the city appeared perfectly normal with schools, colleges and offices marking full attendance. Trains were running on the devastated stretch, rails having been repaired in record time, and planes were flying in and out on time.

Acting as a barometer of this normality was the Bombay Stock Exchange. On Wednesday, the Sensex jumped 315 points to the highest close in two months, thus conveying resilience. Although the stock market was bullish partly because of the excellent half-yearly results of one major information-technology company, the fact is that fears of a steep slide were misplaced. Foreign investors poured money in last Wednesday, rubbing shoulders in solidarity with the people of Bombay. The stock market seemed to scream, "The city cannot be cowed."