The Amritsar district administration enforced a city-wide blackout on Wednesday night as part of a nationwide civil defence mock drill aimed at testing emergency preparedness amid heightened security concerns.
The blackout, initiated under the directive of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), is one of several coordinated drills across the country designed to assess the readiness of local authorities and civilians in the event of potential threats. The District Public Relations Officer (DPRO) urged residents to remain calm and follow safety instructions.
“Taking utmost caution, the Amritsar district administration has again started the blackout process. Please stay at home, do not panic and do not gather outside your houses; keep the outside lights switched off,” the DPRO stated.
The blackout lasted for 30 minutes between 10:30 and 11:00 pm. “The purpose is to prevent visibility of the city from aerial surveillance. The siren was sounded, and within two minutes, the area went dark,” said ASI Jagtar Singh. “It’s a precautionary rehearsal in the national interest,” he added.
The blackout was part of a wider civil defence effort, with states like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and Bihar also participating. Cities such as Surat, Patna, Barmer, Gwalior, and Shimla joined the exercise by turning off lights at public and government buildings. In New Delhi, landmarks like Rashtrapati Bhavan and Vijay Chowk went dark as a symbolic gesture of preparedness.
Earlier in the day, civil defence drills were also carried out in major urban centers, including Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Gwalior, and Jaipur. These exercises were meant to simulate emergency scenarios and assess the coordination between civic authorities and local populations.
This nationwide drill follows closely on the heels of Operation Sindoor, a large-scale retaliatory strike by the Indian Armed Forces targeting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). The operation was launched in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians, including a Nepali national.
Authorities have reassured citizens that the blackout is purely precautionary and part of a strategic effort to bolster national readiness. Residents have been urged to comply with guidelines during these drills and remain alert but calm.
