The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has asked all states and union territories to conduct mock drills for items for effective civil defence across the 244 categorised civil defence districts on 7th May, according to an official document, amid no cessation of hostilities with Pakistan in the wake of the terrorist attack in a meadow near Pahalgam.

“The said Civil Defence Exercise is aimed at assessing the operational efficacy and operational coordination of various Civil Defence measures,” the order reads. According to the order, measures that shall be undertaken include operationalising air raid warning sirens, training civilians and students on the civil defence aspects to protect themselves in the event of a hostile attack. 

The exercise also includes operationalisation of Hotline/Radio communication links with the Indian Air Force, to test the functionality of control rooms and shadow control rooms, and test the functionality of control rooms and shadow control rooms, along with the provision of crash blackout measures, the provision for early camouflaging of vital plants or installations.

Through this exercise, the MHA also envisages verifying the activation and response of Civil Defence services, including warden services, firefighting, rescue operations, and depot management, to assess the implementation of crash blackout measures, and to evaluate the preparedness of evacuation plans and their execution.

In the exercise, the government also envisages active participation of the district Controller, various district authorities, Civil Defence Wardens/Volunteers, Home Guard (active /reservists volunteers), NCC, NSS, NYKS, college and school students.

Tensions have reached their highest ebb in recent years, and this move comes amid heightened public anger and diplomatic tensions following the deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam region barely ten days ago, which shook the nation and drew global condemnation.

At least 26 civilians, including a Nepalese tourist and a local pony guide operator, were massacred by terrorists in the picturesque Baisaran meadow in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22. Relations between the two nations further deteriorated after investigations revealed links between the attackers and terror groups operating from Pakistan. 

Security has since been tightened across border regions, with the Atari-Wagah border closed until further notice. India has asked all diplomats and Pakistani citizens to leave the country, declared the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance, and has put a blanket ban on all imports until further notice, citing zero tolerance for cross-border hostilities and terrorism.