Complete blackout in Punjab's Gurdaspur from tonight amid escalated border tensions with Pakistan

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The Gurdaspur district administration has announced an 8-hour blackout from 9 pm to 5 am till further orders in view of the escalating border tensions with Pakistan, following the Operation Sindoor carried out by Indian armed forces in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Lighting is only allowed in jail and hospitals, but they will have to keep their windows closed and covered, according to the order by authorities.

Blackout rehearsal was also carried out in Amritsar in the early hours of Thursday as part of the nationwide civil defence mock drills, urging residents to remain indoors and not panic. The drill began around 1.30 am.

Rajasthan and Punjab are in full alert mode with schools closed in border districts and leave of all police personnel and administration officials cancelled.

Both states are getting ready for a possible escalation in tensions between Pakistan and India, the officials said.

While Punjab shares a 532-km border with Pakistan, in Rajasthan, the border stretches about 1,070 km.

Punjab Police has cancelled leaves of all its personnel while the state government has shut schools in six border districts, officials said on Thursday.

The Rajasthan government too has cancelled leaves of all administrative officials and police personnel deployed in the border areas, sources said.

In retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack, Indian armed forces early Wednesday carried out missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, including the Jaish-e-Mohammad stronghold of Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba's base in Muridke.