AHMEDABAD: A blackout enforced across Gujarat’s border districts was lifted on Saturday following a sudden ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan. The temporary shutdown came after a wave of drone incursions and cross-border strikes heightened tensions in the region.
The flare-up began early on May 8, when the Indian Army shot down a suspected Pakistani drone over an empty plot in East Kutch, scattering debris across nearby fields.
Authorities immediately launched an investigation to confirm whether the object was a drone or a missile, deepening anxiety along the already volatile frontier.
According to sources, the Army had intercepted a total of five drones near the India-Pakistan border in Gujarat’s Kutch district. Two of them were brought down in Abdasa taluka, one intercepted earlier, and another shot down in Lakhpat, where locals reported hearing a loud explosion. A broken drone was also found in an empty plot in Adipur, while another was downed near Nagore in Bhuj taluka.
"A Pakistan Army armed drone was successfully brought down by the Indian Army using L-70 air defence guns in Kutch this morning," sources said.
Later that night, three more drones were sighted near the Sir Creek area, compounding fears. On the evening of May 9, a full blackout was enforced across Kutch, Jamnagar, and the border villages of Vav and Suigam after additional drone movements were reported.
In Lakhpat, three drones were detected approaching Indian territory, with video footage of the sightings quickly making rounds on social media. Though the drones later vanished from sight, fresh movements were observed near another sector along the border. Around 11 p.m., drones were again spotted near the northern edge of Kutch, the same area where a drone had been shot down earlier.
On the morning of May 10, the Indian Army intercepted yet another drone near the Kutch border.
The blackout, imposed as a precautionary measure, was lifted soon after the ceasefire was announced, bringing momentary relief to the tense border communities.