Delhi Civil Defence to conduct air raid siren test at PWD headquarters

New Delhi [India], May 9 (ANI): The Directorate of Civil Defence, under the Government of National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, will carry out testing of air raid sirens at the PWD Headquarters, ITO, on Friday at 3 PM, the District Magistrate (Central) said in a statement.
According to an official statement, the siren testing exercise will last for 15 to 20 minutes. The public has been advised not to panic during the exercise, which is being conducted as part of routine preparedness measures.
The District Magistrate (Central), G. Sudhakar, has urged the public to remain calm and not to be alarmed when they hear the sirens. Authorities have also requested that adequate publicity be carried out through social and electronic media platforms to inform residents and prevent confusion.
The District Administration has informed key officials across departments, including the Lieutenant Governor, Chief Minister, Cabinet Ministers, Chief Secretary, and the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, about the exercise. Coordination has also been established with the Directorate of Information & Publicity to amplify public awareness regarding the test.
Such exercises are part of periodic drills conducted by civil defence agencies to ensure preparedness for emergencies and to check the functioning of critical alert systems.
Meanwhile, authorities in Ambala district issued an air warning in the early morning after receiving an alert from the local Air Force station. Sirens have been sounded throughout the city, urging residents to stay indoors and avoid balconies or terraces.
According to an official alert issued by the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Ambala, sirens have been sounded across the city to warn residents. People have been advised to remain indoors and refrain from stepping onto balconies or terraces.
In an additional measure, the Deputy Commissioner has ordered a complete blackout in the district, with all lights to remain switched off between 8 PM and 6 AM.
Similarly, the air sirens were sounded across Chandigarh as part of a precautionary measure after the city received an alert from the local Air Force station about a possible attack, said the official.
According to Chandigarh Deputy Commissioner, "An air warning has been received from Air Force station of a possible attack. Sirens are being sounded. All are advised to remain indoors and away from balconies."
Earlier on Thursday, the Indian Army had shot down more than 50 Pakistani drones during a large-scale counter-drone operation along the LoC and International Border (IB), sources told ANI.
The Indian Armed Forces also successfully neutralised Pakistan military's attempts at a large-scale drone and missile attack on multiple Indian military installations across Northern and Western India during the night of May 7-8 and an Air Defence system at Lahore was neutralised.
The Pakistani attack followed India's "Operation Sindoor" on May 7, wherein Indian forces conducted missile strikes on nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. India said that these strikes targeted terrorist infrastructure linked to groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, in retaliation for the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 civilians. (ANI)