'Training students, rehearsing evacuation plans': Key points of May 7 civil defence mock drills amid India-Pakistan tensions

NEW DELHI: The ministry of home affairs on Monday directed several states to conduct civil defence mock drills on Wednesday, May 7, according to central government sources.

The exercise aims to enhance preparedness in the event of a hostile attack, and will include the following measures:

Activation of air raid warning sirens .

Training civilians, including students, in basic civil defence techniques.

Implementation of crash blackout protocols.

Early-stage camouflaging of critical infrastructure and installations.

To evaluate the preparedness of evacuation plans and their execution.

Operationalization of hotline/radio communication links with the Indian Air Force.

To verify the activation and response of Civil Defence services, including warden services, firefighting, rescue operations, and depot management.

To test the functionality of control rooms and shadow control rooms.

Cleaning bunkers and trenches.

Updation of CD plan & rehearsal

These primary objectives of drills have been issued with the approval of director general.

Earlier on Sunday, Ferozepur Cantonment in Punjab along India-Pakistan border conducted a blackout exercise for 30 minutes in late evening.

These exercises for civilians come in the backdrop of Pakistan-backed terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22, which claimed 26 innocent lives.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been holding a series of high-level meetings with top defence officials as India considers its response to Pahalgam terror attack .

PM Modi has vowed to hunt down the perpetrators and conspirators, promising to bring them to justice in a manner that goes "beyond their imagination."