Punjab all set for mock drills in 20 towns as nation ramps up defence preparedness
CHANDIGARH: Amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, civil defence mock drills will be held at 20 places in Punjab, besides several locations in Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh on Wednesday, as per instructions issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
In Punjab, the mock drills will be held in Amritsar, Bathinda, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur, Batala, Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Adampur, Halwara, Patiala, Pathankot, Barnala, Mohali, Faridkot, Kotkapura, Rupnagar, Bhakra Nangal, Sangrur and Abohar.
Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said, "The civil defence teams and Punjab Police, along with the Home Ministry, will conduct mock drills tomorrow," adding that the state government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, is closely monitoring the exercise to ensure the safety of citizens.
"Preparations are almost complete for conducting the mock drills. The objective of the drills is to create awareness among the public and take necessary precautions in the event of any attack," he added.
Cheema said the directions of the Home Ministry will be followed during the mock drills. Sources said that public announcements will be made before the drills.
As per the guidelines issued by MHA, the drills will include activation of air raid warning sirens, training of civilians, students and others in civil defence procedures to protect themselves in the event of a hostile attack, implementation of crash blackout measures, early camouflaging of vital plants and installations, updating and rehearsing of evacuation plans. The ministry had asked several states to conduct mock drills on May 7 for effective civil defence.
"In the meeting today, the issue of sirens was raised as for many years these have not been tested thus many might be dysfunctional for that we need to first check the working of all the civil and defence siren systems and these will be tested. Thus people should not panic," said a senior functionary who took part in the meeting.
Meanwhile, Ferozepur Deputy Commissioner Deepshikha Sharma said as part of the mock drill preparations, six civil defence sirens will be sounded in the city and the Ferozepur Cantonment area from 7 to 7.15 pm on Tuesday.
"These sirens will be sounded for the preparation of the May 7 mock drill," she said, adding that there was no need to worry.
A senior police official in Ferozepur said a blackout rehearsal will be carried out from 9 to 9.30 pm on Wednesday and police patrolling teams will be deployed.
In Haryana too, mock drills will be conducted at many places, including Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram, Hisar, Panchkula, Panipat and Rohtak.
In a letter to the chief secretaries of all states and administrators of Union Territories, the MHA stated that the measures to be taken during the mock drills include the operationalisation of air-raid warning sirens, training civilians on civil-defence aspects to protect themselves in the event of a “hostile attack” and cleaning bunkers and trenches. The other measures are provisions for crash-blackout measures, early camouflaging of vital plants and installations and updating and rehearsing evacuation plans.
The mock drills also include the operationalisation of hotline and radio-communication links with the Indian Air Force (IAF), testing the functionality of control rooms and shadow control rooms.
It said the active participation of the district controllers, various district authorities, civil-defence wardens, volunteers, home guards (active and reservists’ volunteers), National Cadet Corps (NCC), National Service Scheme (NSS), Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan (NYKS), college and school students is envisaged in the exercise.
