57,000 volunteers, officials from Gujarat to take part in mock drill after MHA directive

Senior officials told The Indian Express that 13,000 civil defence volunteers and 44,000 home guards will be involved in the mock drill to be held on Wednesday in urban areas of the state that would include all major cities.

The mock drill will include operation of air raid warning sirens and public information speakers, awareness drives for civilians, keeping lights off during black out periods, and emergency evacuation measures.

While instructions have been passed from Gandhinagar asking personnel to report to their respective companies, a state-level meeting of senior officials will be conducted through video conferencing on Tuesday morning.

Those who will be part of the conference are police officials, collectors, municipal commissioners, officials from state and private power distribution companies and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Roads and Buildings Department (R&B).

Officials said that since the last time such “black out” orders had been imposed were in 1999, most of today’s generation of Indians are unaware of how to react and behave in such situations, necessitating such mock drills.

A senior official told The Indian Express that awareness regarding what steps to take during times of national emergencies needs to be communicated to the common public and that the state government would take these steps to ensure full readiness.