Delhi-NCR residents wake up to sirens and emergency alerts. What is happening?

Residents across Delhi-NCR are hearing sirens and receiving emergency alerts on Friday as part of the nationwide 'Suraksha Chakra' disaster preparedness exercise. The mega disaster management mock drill in Delhi is being conducted at more than 55 locations, including markets, schools and hospitals.

The drill is being held in all 11 districts of Delhi, along with Ghaziabad and Noida in Uttar Pradesh, and Faridabad, Gurugram, Palwal, Nuh and Rewari in Haryana to strengthen coordination and response mechanisms for major disasters like earthquakes and industrial chemical hazards, the officials said.

"The exercise will be conducted at four to six locations in each district. Members of all the government agencies have been instructed and rehearsals for the disaster management modules have already been conducted," said a senior Delhi government officer on Thursday.


The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) earlier said the mock drill will simulate a major earthquake scenario and test real-time preparedness, inter-agency coordination and public response mechanisms.

As part of the exercise, residents may witness increased movement of emergency vehicles including ambulances, fire tenders, police vans and Army trucks.

Temporary facilities like incident command posts, staging areas, relief camps and medical aid posts have also been set up. Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), armed forces, civil defence, Delhi Police and other stakeholders will carry out simulated rescue operations, casualty evacuations and medical assistance to the mock victims, officials said.