Mock drills: Full list of districts where exercise will be conducted
The mock drills will entail crash-blackout measures, early camouflaging of vital plants and installations and updating and rehearsing evacuation plans.
The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday directed all states and union territories to conduct mock drills to check preparedness against "new and complex threats". The direction came amid tension with Pakistan over the Pahalgam terror attack.
The ministry's statement said the drills will be carried out at the 244 categorised civil defence districts across the country on May 7.
Also read: Day after mock drill order, union home secretary convenes crucial meeting
Here's the full list of these districts:
The home ministry's notification said the mock drills will check preparedness for the operationalisation of air-raid warning sirens and train civilians on civil-defence aspects to protect themselves in the event of a "hostile attack".
Also read: Civil defence volunteers rehearse mock drill exercise in Lucknow’s Police Lines
The mock drills will entail crash-blackout measures, early camouflaging of vital plants and installations and updating and rehearsing evacuation plans.
Also read: Pakistan says India choked Chenab water flow jeopardising early Kharif crop season
The mock drills will 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.
Also read: India cuts off water flow to Pakistan from dam on river Chenab
“In the current geo-political scenario, new and complex threats/challenges have emerged, hence, it would be prudent that optimum civil defence preparedness in the states/UTs is maintained at all times,” the letter from the Directorate General Fire Service, Civil Defence and Home Guards said.
"The conduct of the exercise is planned up to the village level. This exercise aims to assess and enhance the readiness of civil defence mechanisms across all states and Union territories," the letter added.
Union home secretary Govind Mohan on Tuesday convened a meeting regarding the conduct of mock drills, which was attended by several high-ranking officials.
"We are reviewing preparedness. Loop holes to be rectified have been identified," a member of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) told ANI after the meeting.
