Operation Shield is a nationwide civil defense exercise aimed at assessing and enhancing India's preparedness against aerial threats such as air raids, drone attacks, and missile strikes.
Following government guidelines, the drills featured air raid sirens, the activation of emergency control rooms, evacuation practices, and coordination with civil defence personnel.
The nationwide mock drills will cover several districts, including those marked as vulnerable to security threats. They are being conducted in coordination with state and district authorities
More than 10,000 volunteers of civil defence, National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets and Home Guard volunteers will participate in the mock drill, a senior official of Civil Defence, told PTI.
Sudhansu Sarangi, DG, Fire Services, who attended the meeting, said the MHA has asked all states, including Odisha, to conduct the mock drill at 4 pm on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Home Affairs had on Monday asked all states to conduct mock drills on Wednesday, given the "new and complex threats" that have emerged amid rising tensions with Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack.
Amid a spurt in the number of coronavirus cases in the city, Delhi government-run hospitals on March 26 carried out mock drills to assess their COVID-19 preparedness.