New Delhi/IBNS: The Centre has asked all states to conduct security mock drills on Wednesday (May 7) for "effective civil defence in the event of a hostile attack" amid tensions between India and Pakistan in the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, media reports said.

The timing of the Centre's order is crucial. The last such drill was conducted in 1971, the year in which India and Pakistan went into war.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has asked states to operationalise air raid warning sirens and train civilians to protect themselves in the event of a hostile attack.

States have been asked to undertake crash blackout measures and provision for early camouflaging of vital plants/installations.

Pakistan has fired on Indian posts along the Line of Control for 11 consecutive nights. India has strongly responded to Islamabad's repeated cross-border firing.

In Punjab's Ferozepur, lights were switched off in the cantonment area from 9 to 9:30 pm on Sunday. The officer asked the Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd (PSPCL) to cut electricity at the exercise's scheduled time.

"You are requested to ensure adequate security arrangements during this period, given the total blackout," the Cantonment Board officer said in a letter.

"This rehearsal aims to ensure preparedness and effectiveness in implementing blackout procedures during prevailing war threats," the officer said.

Following measures will be undertaken

1. Operationalization of Air Raid Warning Sirens

2. Training of civilians, students, etc, on the civil defence aspects to protect themselves in the event of a hostile attack

3. Provision of crash black out measures

4. Provision for early camouflaging of vital plants/ installations

5. Updation of evacuation plan & its rehearsal

Following the Pahalgam attack, in which 26 civilians were shot down by terrorists with links to Pakistan, there has been a major escalation along the border.

PM Modi meets top defence official

With India vowing to avenge the worst-ever attack in Jammu and Kashmir since Pulwama in 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh amid speculation over how New Delhi would respond to the terror strike. 

The meeting lasted for more than half an hour and came a day after the Prime Minister met Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh.

The Prime Minister has also met the chiefs of the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

PM Modi has warned that those involved in carrying out and plotting the terror attack will get the harshest of punishment, and his sentiment has been echoed by political leaders across party lines.

On Sunday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh assured the nation that "what you desire will certainly happen", dropping a significant hint about India's next move.

In an immediate response, India suspended the landmark Indus River water-sharing treaty and closed the Attari-Wagah road border, which acts as a lifeline of Indo-Pak trade and people-to-people ties, besides expelling diplomats, downsizing high commissions, and issuing a 48-hour deadline to Pakistani visa holders present in India to leave.