Mock drills are conducted to prepare a civil response to a possible war.
It is done to invoke civil defence mechanisms — under Section 19 of the Civil Defence Rules, 1968,of the MHA. The objective is to protect people and vulnerable installations in case of an attack by an adversary.On the basis of threat perception, all the civil defence districts are categorised in three categories.
Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Surat and Vadodara are among the 12 civil defence districts in category 1, which face higher risk.There are around 200 less vulnerable districts such as Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar and North Goa, which fall under category 2. There are 42 like districts, including Pulwama,Aurangabad, and Ratnagiri, which come under category 3.
The civil defence districts are designated areas for organising and executing emergency response strategies.
They are hubs, invested with infra and logistic support for training local volunteers, managing local responses and for smooth coordination between civilian and security and military forces during the national crisis.
Have such drills been conducted in the past?
A former Director General of Civil Defence told businessline that he does not recall such a mock drill being conducted in the immediate past, except during the1971 war.
However, the Directorate of Civil Defence annually carries out mock drills to assess responses to natural calamities which have increased in the country.
According to him, there is a need to redefine complete architecture of the civil defence because dynamics of modern warfare has changed.
Now fighter planes do not come into and enemy country to bombard, he said. Long distance missiles are fired to pulverise the targets thousands of kilometres away, he pointed out.
The changed rules of battle were visible during the ongoing conflicts, between Russia and Ukraine and Israel and Hamas, he observed.
Who should participate in these drills?
State governments and local administration will seek active participation of the district controller, various district departments including police, civil defence wardens, Home Guards, National Cadet Corps, Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, students and volunteers, in the civil defence exercise to train them to manage a national crisis situation.
What are the aspects which will be covered by this drill?
The Directorate of Civil Defence has advised States for:
1. Operationalisation of Air Raid Warning Sirens
2. Operationalisation of hotline/radio communication links with the Indian Air Force
3.Activation and Manning of Control Rooms/ Shadow Control Room
4. Training of civilians, students and others on the civil defence aspects to protect themselves in the event of a hostile attack
5. Activation of Civil Defence Services, especially warden services, firefighting, rescue service, depot etc
6. Provision of crash black out measures
7. Provision of early camouflaging of vital plants and installations
8. Updation of Civil Defence Plan and its rehearsal
9. Cleaning of bunkers, trenches, etc
How will this drill help us in case of an onset of war?
Since security and defence forces cannot practically man and secure the entire country,participation of civilians is sought to protect society and restore vital services and facilities that have been destroyed or damaged by disaster.
In case of a war, the Civil Defence set up is expected to play vital role of guarding the hinterland, supporting the armed forces, mobilising the citizens and helping civil administration. The concept of Civil Defence has shifted from management of damage against conventional weapons to include threat perceptions against nuclear weapons, biological / chemical warfare and natural and man-made disasters, says Directorate of Civil Defence on its website.
The Chinese aggression in 1962 and the Indo-Pak conflict in 1965 led to a considerable re-thinking about the policy and scope of Civil Defence. Accordingly, the Civil Defence Act, 1968 (Act 27 of 1968) was passed by Parliament in May 1968.
Do Indian cities and towns have bomb shelters/ bunkers etc?
No. Only Delhi and some major metros and districts close to borders with Pakistan, China and Bangladesh have bomb shelters, like bunkers and trenches.
Even so, the existence of such facilities is kept away from public glare. World over underground metro stations are also converted into bomb shelters.