Civil defence mock drill successfully conducted across Tripura

The Civil Defence mock drills were conducted across Tripura along with other parts of the country including several capital cities of the states, following the success of Operation Sindoor.

The mock exercises were conducted in 52 districts of eight Northeastern states following the success of 'Operation Sindoor' conducted by India’s Armed forces targeting terrorist camps across the border in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK).

The mock drills were conducted on the directive of the MHA as part of heightened security measures following the April 22 terror attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam, in which 26 innocent civilians, mostly tourists, were killed.

Of the 52 districts, the exercises were carried out in 15 districts in Assam, followed by 10 districts in Nagaland, eight in Tripura, seven in Meghalaya, five each in Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur and one each district in Mizoram and Sikkim.

Officials said that in the mock exercises, District Administrations, police, Civil Defence, Fire Department, State and National Disaster Response Force, Health and Power Departments, educational institutions and Information and Public Relations Directorates were involved. Thousands of men and women in every place gathered to witness the mock drills.

In Tripura, after the mock drill was completed at Umakanta Academy in Agartala, District Magistrate of the West Tripura district, Dr Vishal Kumar, said the mock drill was conducted with personnel from 17 departments associated with disaster management, over 500 common people, including political and social volunteers.

While stating that tremendous general enthusiasm, determination, unity and commitment of nationalistic spirit were seen among the participants on Wednesday, he said.

He said that if any situation of an earthquake or air attack happens, the common people and the administrations are fully prepared and aware.

However, Dr Kumar said "some shortcomings" were found in general awareness and that the government is working to improve upon it through community mobilization.

He said that the objective of this mock drill is to assess the preparedness, efficacy, and coordination among civil defence units and allied agencies in responding to hostile attacks and emergencies. The drill has included testing the alert systems, evacuation procedures, public safety measures, and inter-agency coordination. The trained Civil Defence Volunteers spread across all the eight districts of the state participated in the mock drill.

Dr Vishal Kumar also said that the mock drill for West Tripura district at Umakanta Academy ground from 3.30 PM to 6 PM on Wednesday and siren were played at 4 PM and 5.30 PM.