NEW DELHI, May 7: Mock drills, blackouts and other civil defence measures were carried out across the country on Wednesday as per the direction of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs as a precautionary measure in case of any retaliatory steps from Pakistan to India’s “Operation Sindoor.”
The Union Home Minister Amit Shah, at a meeting attended by Chief Ministers of States bordering Pakistan and Nepal held earlier during the day said all States should make preparations as per the guidelines issued for the mock drill, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement.
He said arrangements should be made for smooth operation of essential services like hospitals, fire brigade etc. and uninterrupted supply of essential goods should be ensured. The Home Minister asked the States to keep SDRF, Civil Defence, Home Guards, NCC etc. on alert to deal with any situation.
Mr Shah said strict vigil should be kept on anti-national propaganda by unwanted elements on social and other media platforms and prompt action should be taken in coordination with state governments and central agencies.
He said every effort should be made to maintain seamless communication and the security of vulnerable points should also be further strengthened. He asked the States to stop spreading unnecessary fear among the public and take steps to spread awareness among the people against rumours.
The drills have been planned to test the efficacy of the operationalisation of air-raid warning signs, crash blackout measures, camouflaging vital installations, evacuation plans, establishing hotline with the Indian Air Force, activating control rooms, firefighting and warden services and undertake cleaning of bunkers and trenches among others.
In the national capital of Delhi, the mock drills were carried out in the Ram Manohar Lohia hospital and in 55 other locations including Connaught Place, Khan Market, and Chandni Chowk, to check the preparedness of security agencies.
In Kolkata, evacuation drills were conducted by four private schools in Kolkata on Wednesday to assess the preparedness among students in case of an exigency. The drills were conducted by the National Cadet Corps (NCC) wings based on instructions from the government. Students went through the process of evacuating their classroom after an alarm was sounded, assembling in the courtyard, and taking shelter. They returned to their classrooms once the all-clear signal was given, he said.
A large-scale civil defence mock drill was conducted in Hyderabad as part of a nationwide preparedness exercise code-named ‘Operation Abhyaas’. The drill was conducted from 4.00 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. across the city within the Outer Ring Road (ORR) limits involving 12 Civil Defence services including police, fire, rescue, medical, and municipal departments.
A civil defence exercise and rehearsal in certain vital installations in Tamil Nadu including Madras Atomic Power Station at Kalpakkam and Chennai Port Trust campuses were held on Wednesday evening. “During this drill, activities will be undertaken in these two vital installations to handle an incoming air raid. The conditions will be simulated to check the preparedness of the systems to handle any kind of emergency,” an official release from the Tamil Nadu government said.
As part of the nationwide civil defence drill air raid warnings and reaction drills were carried out in Bengaluru, Karwar, Raichur, Mysuru and Mandya districts in Karnataka. The drill will continue through the next week, an official statement said.
In Maharashtra, civil defence mock drills were conducted at 16 locations across 10 districts in the state, officials said. Civil Defence teams conducted a comprehensive mock drill at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, earlier in the day. More than 10,000 volunteers of civil defence, National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets and Home Guard volunteers participated in the mock drill, a senior official of Civil Defence said. The districts covered under the mock drill in Maharashtra included Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Raigad, Jalgaon, Nashik, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg and Palghar.
In Gujarat, civil defence mock drills and blackouts were conducted in 18 districts. While mock drills were held at vital installations in each of these 18 districts at 4 pm, citizens participated in ‘blackout’ mock drills by switching off lights between 7.30 pm and 8 pm. Mock drills were held at Vadodara, Surat, Tapi, Patan, Banaskantha, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Morbi, Gir Somnath, Mehsana, Narmada, Navsari, Dang, Kutch, Bharuch, Gandhinagar and Bhavnagar.
(Manas Dasgupta)
