Mock Drills to be Held in Bengaluru, Raichur & Karwar After Pahalgam Attack
Following the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, on April 22, tensions with Pakistan have increased. To be ready, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) ordered mock drills in 244 locations across India on May 7.
These drills are being held in many cities, including Bengaluru, Raichur, and Karwar in Karnataka.
Why These Places Were Chosen:
Prashant Kumar Thakur, head of the Home Guards, Civil Defence, and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), explained why these cities were selected.
Bengaluru is a big city with a large population. It is also home to top IT and biotech companies.
Important places like ISRO, DRDO, and the Yelahanka Air Force Base are also in Bengaluru.
Raichur has a big thermal power plant, which helps make electricity for the state.
Karwar has the Kaiga nuclear power plant—one of the biggest in India. It is also near INS Kadamba, a major naval base.
Thakur said all mock drills would be finished by 4 PM on May 7.
More About the Drills:
Thakur said that in the past, civil defence forces were active during the 1971 Indo-Pak war.
But later, these activities slowed down.
Now, the MHA wants to activate civil defence forces again.
He added that the MHA held video meetings with state officials to plan these drills.
A police officer said that Karnataka cities are in Category B.
This means their mock drills are different from the ones near border states like Punjab or Jammu & Kashmir.
What is the Aim?
The goal of the drill is to:
Train people, especially civilians and students,
Teach how to stay safe during enemy attacks
Early on Wednesday, the Indian armed forces carried out 24 missile strikes on 9 terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK).
The strikes hit important terror hubs, including Muridke – a stronghold of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Bahawalpur – a base of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM).
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