Rajasthan: Leaves cancelled, schools shut in five border districts; blackout enforced
Holiday declared in schools in border districts of Rajasthan until further notice in aftermath of Operation Sindoor
Following heightened tensions and Operation Sindoor, the Rajasthan government has cancelled leaves for personnel near the International Border and closed schools in five districts. A precautionary blackout is in effect, and flight operations are suspended at several airports. These measures were implemented after a review by the Chief Minister, prompted by retaliation strikes following a massacre.
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
The Rajasthan government has cancelled administrative and police personnel's leaves deployed near the International Border and closed schools in five districts amid heightened tension between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor . With high alert sounded in the border districts of western Rajasthan, a blackout has been instituted in these areas from midnight to 4 am till further orders as a safeguard against possible threat of air strikes.Government and private schools have been closed in Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Barmer districts as a precautionary measure, officials said on Thursday.All Jodhpur colleges were also ordered to remain closed.Moreover, flight operations at Bikaner, Kishangarh in Ajmer, and Jodhpur airports have been suspended till May 10 as a precautionary measure.The decisions were made after Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma took stock of the situation in the border areas as India struck terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir in retaliation to the April 22 Pahalgam massacre that killed 26 people.Chief Secretary Sudhansh Pant and state police chief U R Sahoo chaired a review meeting with divisional commissioners, collectors and inspectors general of police and superintendents of police and directed them to be remain present at their headquarters, sources said.Police have been directed to beef up security measures across the state in view of the developing security situation.In the border district of Jaisalmer, Collector Pratap Singh Nathawat said all schools will remain closed till further orders but teachers have to be present there on time and warned of strict action if the order is violated.Barmer and Jodhpur district collectors issued advisories, urging people to remain vigilant, and not to panic or spread rumours while cooperating with security agencies and the administrations in instituting critical safety measures.District collectors and SPs have been instructed to implement disaster management protocols that include stocking up hospitals with life-saving medications with personnel on standby, maintaining an adequate supply of all blood groups at all blood banks and keeping certain schools ready to serve as temporary shelters.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
‘Live battle opportunity': Major PR Rahul calls Operation Sindoor ‘thrilling', says priority was evacuating people from border areas
THRISSUR: Major P R Rahul, from Puthoor in the district, on Wednesday said he was thrilled to have participated in India's recent military action Operation Sindoor . Major Rahul has been serving in the Army for the last eight years and was deployed in the artillery regiment just 8km from the Pakistan border during the operation. 'It was a fantastic and thrilling experience. It was a sort of once in a lifetime opportunity to participate in a live battle. At the same time, it was more concerning for the civilians as they were involved not by force, but by virtue of being there. Our concern was for them,' Rahul told TOI. He is presently visiting his family at Puthur. 'The operation was quite professionally dealt with, and we could achieve what we wanted to,' he said. 'We said in the beginning that we would give a befitting reply at the time and place of our choosing, and went into the planning. Our concern was to evacuate most people living along the border to safer places,' said Rahul. On the affected people's response to the operation, he said, 'They are always supportive. They told us that we could use all their resources, their houses and everything. Most people living there had previously served in the Army, and knew the dynamics. They even volunteered to come and help us in terms of any requirement: manpower, fuel, food, shelter or anything else. That was even more encouraging for us.' Son of Puthur Poluvalappil Raveendranathan and Sheeja, Rahul was felicitated by DCC president Joseph Tajet and other Congress functionaries for his contributions during Operation Sindoor. He was also given a reception by the residents' association at Puthur on Wednesday morning.
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
Hate speech: BJP files FIR against man who accused Sharmistha; Wazahat Khan now faces charges himself
. NEW DELHI: BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul and West Bengal BJP legal cell member Sanjukta Samanta have filed FIRs against Wazahat Khan Qadri, who had complained against influencer Sharmistha Panoli for alleged communal remarks on social media. The FIRs were registered at Ballygunge police station in Kolkata and Howrah police station. Qadri is accused of regularly making communal and inflammatory remarks on social media. A senior police officer earlier confirmed that at least seven separate complaints were filed against him, including at the Lalbazar cyber cell. 'We are verifying the social media content and further legal action will follow,' the officer added. Qadri's account on X has since been locked. Qadri has been "untraceable" since Sunday, according to police sources. His father, Saadaq Khan, has alleged that a 'witch hunt' has been launched against his son ever since Panoli's arrest. He also claimed that Qadri's accounts may have been hacked and denied that his son harboured any hatred toward any religion. 'My son is secular. We've been receiving threats since Sharmistha's arrest,' he said. Meanwhile, the Calcutta High Court granted interim bail to Sharmistha Panoli on Thursday. The bench ruled that the FIR against her did not reveal any cognisable offence. Panoli, a law student, was arrested from Gurugram last week following the circulation of a video in which she criticised Bollywood actors in context of Operation Sindoor.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
‘The Muslim countries we visited see India as an opportunity, Pakistan as the problem child': Baijayant Panda
BJP MP Baijayant Panda returned to the country after leading an all-party delegation to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Algeria, and Kuwait to put forward the government's stand on the Pahalgam terror attack, Operation Sindoor, and the terror emanating from Pakistan. In an interview, he speaks about the discussions the delegation had in these Islamic countries, India-Pakistan hyphenation on the global stage, and reactions from back home. Excerpts: * You led the all-party delegation to four countries that are part of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Were there any surprises with regard to their responses? The surprises were only pleasant … These countries are literally in Pakistan's backyard and being Islamic nations, Pakistan has cultivated them over decades. However, two things go in the other direction. One, these nations have had historical and civilisational ties with India, which they truly value … When we spoke of India not having invaded other countries, they were already aware. They talk with pride about how their grandfathers were dependent on India in the pre-oil era and spoke about how they used Indian currency till the 1960s. Secondly, the last decade has seen a dramatic turnaround. All of them spoke respectfully and fondly of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and had a positive impression. He has worked towards it and visited these countries multiple times, during which he has developed a rapport with some of their top leadership. Some of these countries have bestowed their highest honours on our PM. Third is India's renewed trajectory as one of the global economic engines. Lastly, over the last few years, not only trade and investments but even military cooperation with these countries has gone up. There are military agreements with Saudi Arabia and joint military exercises have happened over the last couple of years. Also, discussions on intelligence sharing are underway. All these things went in our favour. Moreover, these countries understand Pakistan very well and have been on the receiving end of terrorism. So, it was a bit surprising for us that we found ourselves on the same page as them even before we put our points across. * What about the OIC? It has not taken a strong position … That in itself is a good sign as the OIC in the past has been completely one-sided. Now, some of the member nations of the OIC are in the UN Security Council and a few others are a part of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Some nations have been party to proscribing terrorists and terror organisations that operate in Pakistan and some member nations have said the OIC must take up a path of deradicalising some of these countries. The trajectories of these countries and Pakistan have diverged over the last two decades … All these countries are reforming and are now very strictly against radicalisation, and do not allow jihadi elements to use their soil but Pakistan has taken a different direction. Pakistan has also taken funding from some of these countries and not used it for the right purpose. * Who did you meet in these countries? The meetings were at the government level, Deputy PM level. Some of these countries have bicameral representative bodies, while some are unicameral. Some meetings were at the chairman level, which is equivalent to our Speaker or Vice President. Then, we held meetings with think-tanks. Some of them are very impressive. * What type of questions was your delegation asked? Did Kashmir come up? Everybody understands the Kashmir issue and knows that many portrayals of India are inaccurate. For instance, if you look at minorities, they understand that their percentage in India has grown. Minorities in India are not looking to make a dash to the exit door, unlike in neighbouring countries where they have been decimated. The paradigm has been the same for years. Pakistan has a set copybook that they will send proxy terrorists across the border, execute an attack, and immediately claim innocence. They have done it repeatedly: Mumbai, Pulwama, everywhere. Six months later, they get caught and acknowledge it but do not take any action. If India retaliates, they scream bloody murder and try to get the world involved. They also resort to nuclear blackmail, while we have made it clear that we do not want hostilities. In fact, Pakistan provokes hostilities with a terrorist attack, but we do not want escalations either. These are nuances which were discussed a lot. I would not say they were tough questions. They were very cooperative as the countries have taken similar actions against terrorists. * Much is being talked about the India-Pakistan hyphenation… Somebody is either misreading the situation or some people are trying to misrepresent it. It is clear that India is an opportunity and Pakistan is the problem child. At least in the Gulf countries, Algeria, and West Asia, they do not see India and Pakistan as hyphenated. They told us that India and Pakistan are in different orbits. Maybe some other countries have different interests, but these countries see Pakistan as exploitative, while they view India as an opportunity. * While the delegations were abroad, political differences emerged back home with the Congress slamming the government. Did this come up in your discussions? Not at all. The leaders we met have high regard for our PM and high respect for India. They have pinned hopes on India as an economic and military partner. All countries repeatedly told us that they want to increase economic and military cooperation. This (contrarian) narrative has come only from two or three individuals. I will not blame the Congress entirely as several of its members were a part of the delegations. It all boils down to the same three or four individuals. They are so frustrated that they stoop to the extent of taking a stand against India's foreign policy in the garb of attacking the PM. It was not at all reflective of our engagement and experience in the four countries. * Were there any questions on the future of the Indus Waters Treaty? We specifically explained to them the situation we are in and how we have been in this deja vu situation. Pakistan started cross-border terrorism from October 1947, right after Partition. We explained that we tried everything: treaties, initiatives, bus diplomacy, PM Modi inviting them to India and going there for weddings, cultural diplomacy, cricket diplomacy, and Bollywood. But nothing has worked. We also told them that Pakistan keeps violating understandings like the Simla Agreement. One of the key aspects was to explain to them our new normal and as a country we have taken a different approach over the last few years. We will target terrorist bases and not escalate unless you do and we will never go to the nuclear threshold. The next move will be economic sanctions and not just water. They will involve trade, shipping, and visas. We also explained that these sanctions are not intended to be permanent and are only intended to push Pakistan into changing its policies. We made it clear, whether it is water or trade, we have made concessions in the past with magnanimity, but they have not worked. Now, Pakistan has to take action against the terrorists, who openly operate from its soil.
