NEW DELHI: At Lajpat Nagar, air sirens blared through speakers and police officials issued cautionary messages through megaphones asking shops to shut down as the authorities simulated an air strike raid at one of the prime markets in the city, the central market.
During the simulated mock exercise, a total of 25 people were declared injured and seven were declared dead, said an official involved in the exercise.
Fire tenders and a bomb squad remained on the stand by. “The patients were shifted to the nearest Moolchand Hospital for treatment through CATS ambulances as part of the mock exercise,” the official added. The exercise, which started at 4 pm, continued for an hour generating a lot of attention and curiosity from passers-by.
However, as the area was cordoned-off, people were discouraged from entering the mock exercise spot by the police. Meanwhile, traffic personnel were busy on roads navigating the vehicular traffic stopping to click photos and shoot videos for reels.
However, shopkeepers and customers were caught off guard with the emergency mock drill and complained that the sudden order to close shops for the exercise affected their business.
“Police officials said that traders associations were informed in advance about the exercise. Had they forwarded the information to us, we would have been ready. A lot of customers were asked to go till the exercise continued,” said Bansi Lal Gupta, a garment trader at the market.
By the time, the ambulances and fire tenders rolled into South Delhi’s Select City Mall, a small crowd had gathered around the periphery of the mall’s outer courtyard. The excitement in the crowd was palpable. “We have never had such an opportunity before,” said 52-year-old Kishore Mehrotra, who had come to the mall specifically to watch the drill.