All you want to know about the mock drill

New Delhi: Vivek Srivastava, Director General of Fire Service, Civil Defence & Home Guards, leaves after attending a meeting convened by Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan regarding the conduct of mock drills on Wednesday, at North Block, in New Delhi, Tuesday, May 6, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
PTI

The mock drills are preparedness for a civil response to a possible war. Indian officials however clarified that Union Ministry of Home Affairs’ direction to states to hold such exercise on May 7 in 244 categorised ‘civil defence’ districts in no way indicates immediate threat of a conflict with Pakistan.

It is done to invoke civil defence mechanisms — under Section 19 of the Civil Defence Rules, 1968, of the MHA — to broadly protect people and vulnerable installations in case of an attack by an adversary, the letter to states said. On the basis of threat perception, all the civil defence districts are clubbed in three categories in collaboration with Ministry of Defence.

Like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Surat and Vadodara figure among about a dozen category 1 civil defence districts. There around 200 less vulnerable districts such as Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar and North Goa which fall under the category 2 and, finally, around 42 like Pulwama, Aurangabad, and Ratnagiri come under category 3.

The Centre’s move comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi publicly vowed on more than one occasion to avenge deaths of 26 innocent terrorists, including a Nepali, in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.

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 country in the near future but for during the 1971 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 kilometers 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.

Why has the government scheduled a mock drill on May 7?

Though its difficult to comment on why May 7 has been chosen by the MHA, it may be because its better to be prepared at the earliest for any eventuality than repent later owing to uncertainly over predicting the timing and place of expected retaliation from Pakistan in case India strikes. This may also indicate that India is prepared to respond to hunt down Pakistan backed terrorists allegedly responsible for Pahalgam attack.

Who should participate in these drills? Is it also targeted at common men and women?

As per the guideline shared by the Directorate of Civil Defence, in the civil defence exercise, state governments and local administration seek active participation of the district controller, various district departments including police, civil defence wardens and volunteers, Home Guards ( active as well as reservists), National Cadet Corps, National Service Scheme, and Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, colleges and students, for managing national crisis situation.

Will we be notified of a time when we have to participate in the drill?

The note to states only mentions May 7 as the day to carry out the mock drill but chances are that timings of executing it may be decided in the meeting Union Home Secretary has called of chief secretaries of states and Union Territories on Tuesday to discuss the preparedness for mock drill. The states have to submit an action taken report to the MHA on it.

However, PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah during their addresses at the Chintan Shivir at Surajkund, Haryanam on October 27 to October 28, 2022, had emphasises importance of the civil defence preparedness in the country,especially in bordering and coastal areas of states and UTs. Later the MHA wrote letters in January 2023 to chief secretaries of states and UTs, stating that new and complex threats and challenges have emerged, which may pose potential distress to the civilian lives and livelihood during the hostile attack or internal security situations.

What are the aspects which will be covered by this drill?

The Directorate of Civil Defence has advised states for:

Opertionalisation of Air Raid Warning Sirens
Opertionalisation of hotline/radio communication links with the Indian Air Force
Activation and Manning of Control Rooms/ Shadow Control Room
Training of civilians, students and others on the civil defence aspects to proctect themselves in the event of a hostile attack
Activation of Civil Defence Services, especially warden services, firefighting, rescue service, depot etc
Provision of crash black out measures
Provision of early camouflaging of vital plants and installations
Updation of Civil Defence Plan and its rehersal
Cleaning of bunkers, trenches, etc

How will this drill help us in case of an onset of war?

Because there is limitation of security and defence forces to man and secure entire country, participation of civilians are 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 over the years has shifted from management of damage against conventional weapons to also include threat perceptions against nuclear weapons, biological & chemical warfare and natural and man-made disasters, said the Directorate of Civil Defence in 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. Otherwise also, existence of such facilities are kept away from public glare. World over underground metro stations are also converted into bomb shelters.