Fresh air siren sounded in Chandigarh, Malayali students set to return home

Chandigarh: The Chandigarh administration on Friday sounded an air raid siren, appealing to people to remain indoors.

"An air warning has been received from the air force station of a possible attack. Sirens are being sounded. All are advised to remain indoors and away from balconies," an official statement issued by the Chandigarh administration said.

The development comes amid flaring tensions between India and Pakistan.

The Mohali district administration in Punjab has also advised people living in the areas bordering Chandigarh to remain indoors, PTI reported. "There is an alert in some areas of Chandigarh. We are advising Mohali residents in the bordering sectors to remain indoors and away from windows and glass panes," a message shared by the Mohali administration said.

Similar air siren was sounded in Chandigarh on Thursday night as India swiftly thwarted Pakistan's fresh attempts to strike military sites with drones and missiles, including in Jammu, Pathankot and Udhampur, after foiling its attempts to target military installations in 15 cities in the northern and western parts of the country.

As per the defence ministry, the Pakistani military on Thursday night attempted to target Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Adampur, Bathinda, Chandigarh, Nal, Phalodi, Uttarlai and Bhuj.

According to Mridul Dutta, a resident of Jalandhar, there are currently no restrictions on movement during the day. “However, there have been blackouts for the past two nights. We could hear drones being intercepted,” she told Onmanorama.

Following a Punjab government order stipulating the closure of all educational institutions in the state, students from other parts of the country have been advised to return to their home states. 

Navani Lakshmi, a Malayali student studying in Punjab, told Onmanorama, “Since flight services from Amritsar and Chandigarh remain suspended, many students are choosing to travel by train or by taking flights from Delhi. Trains to Delhi are filling up quickly”. 

However, several users on X highlighted that some universities in the state are not complying with the government order and are proceeding with scheduled classes and examinations. They requested state authorities to rigorously enforce the government directive. 

The attempts by the Pakistani forces came after the Indian armed forces on Wednesday carried out precise missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan under Operation Sindoor' in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.