Armed forces downed 'surveillance drone' in Punjab's Jalandhar, says official
Armed forces downed 'surveillance drone' in Punjab's Jalandhar, says official
Chandigarh, Armed forces neutralised a suspected "surveillance drone" in Punjab's Jalandhar, a senior district official said in a late-night message on Monday.
Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal said, "I have been informed that one surveillance drone was brought down by the armed forces around 9:20 pm near Mand village. An expert team is looking for the debris."
In a message at 10:45 pm, he advised people against going near any debris and to immediately inform the nearest police station.
It has also been informed that there was no drone activity since 10 pm, Aggarwal said.
The Jalandhar deputy commissioner urged residents to remain calm and not burst firecrackers, as had been reported in some areas.
Strict police action will be taken against people who try to create panic, he warned.
"We have cut off electricity in some areas of Jalandhar as a precaution and will review the situation after some time. Nothing to worry," Aggarwal said.
Earlier, he had said lights had been switched off in some areas around Suranassi as a precautionary measure after reports of drone sightings.
"We are verifying them. There is no blackout as of now. There is nothing to worry, as confirmed by armed forces officers. They are on regular vigil as always," Aggarwal had said in a message at 9:15 pm.
Precautionary blackout measures were also enforced in Punjab's Amritsar and Hoshiarpur districts.
Punjab shares a 553-kilometre border with Pakistan.
An air-raid siren was sounded in Amritsar, which lies along the border.
"We are alert. We are enforcing a blackout," Amritsar Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney said in a message and urged people to stay away from windows.
The Amritsar administration has urged citizens to remain calm. "We will notify you when the electricity supply is ready to be restored. Do not panic."
An IndiGo flight bound for Amritsar returned to Delhi on Monday after the blackout measures were enforced, sources said.
They said the flight had to return as the Amritsar airport was closed due to the precautionary blackout.
In Hoshiarpur district, blackout measures were enforced in Dasuya and Mukerian.
Earlier in the day, a semblance of normalcy was observed in the border areas of Punjab, with markets teeming with people even though schools in some districts remained shut as a precautionary measure following the suspension of hostilities between India and Pakistan.
New Delhi and Islamabad reached an understanding on May 10 to halt military actions after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
