Drone sighting rumours spread to NCR villages, police field panic calls
The sightings have been followed by villagers standing patrol with sticks as rumours swirl. Locals believe gangs are using drones to spy on their houses and rob them. Reports of 'drone sightings' in other districts have been spreading through social media posts, some of which are accompanied by videos of drones. But their authenticity is questionable.
According to police, the maximum number of calls (9) came from Bhojpur, which is close to Meerut, followed by three from Muradnagar and one from Kotwali.
Police said most callers claimed to have seen drones hovering near rooftops late in the night. "All the calls were verified by local police units, but no drone was recovered or visually confirmed so far," DCP (rural) Surendra Nath Tiwari said.
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One such caller, Md Aamir, a resident of Bhojpur, claimed to have seen two drones on Sunday night. "Around midnight, some locals raised an alarm after spotting a drone. I saw it near my neighbour's terrace, hovering close to a window.
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We threw stones at it, and it flew away. Five minutes later, another drone appeared. This is when we called the police. But it escaped as children started pelting stones," he said.
In Muradnagar, Veerendra Kumar spoke of a similar incident. "I was inside the room while my wife and children were sleeping on the terrace. Suddenly, they shouted 'drone, drone'. When I came out, I saw it above our terrace," he told TOI. "I called my brother and neighbours.
We saw the drone fly toward the forest and disappear."
A police team visited the spot but couldn't find any drone. Kumar told cops that on June 29 night, when he was admitted to a hospital for surgery and his children stayed at his brother's house next door, Rs 25,000 in cash and valuables were stolen from his home.
In Masuri, villagers, including pradhan Tassawar Ali of Nahal village, claimed to have seen drones hovering overhead for the past five nights.
A local team has been formed to patrol the village, and complaints have been lodged with the Masuri police.
The DCP told TOI that some locals have submitted videos that are being sent to forensic labs for analysis. "We've intensified patrolling in these villages. Special police teams were deployed from 11pm to 3am on Sunday, too, but nothing unusual was found," he said.
Police have urged people not to rely on unverified social media claims and report any suspicious activity for investigation.
Reiterating that no concrete evidence had emerged to confirm drone sightings in Ghaziabad, Additional CP Alok Priyadarshi told TOI that restrictions under Section 163 of BNSS, prohibiting drones, UAVs, hot-air balloons and paragliders were imposed in Ghaziabad during Operation Sindoor in May and continue to remain in force.
Under it, nine police station areas, including Kotwali, Kavi Nagar, Link Road, Sahibabad, Vijay Nagar, Tronica City, Loni, Modinagar and Muradnagar, were declared no-fly zones due to their proximity to the Hindon IAF base.
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