Explosion sounds, debris falling trigger panic in Punjab and Haryana

On Saturday Pathankot in Punjab went into an alert mode after sounds of explosion were heard in the border district Amid the escalating IndiaPakistan tensions local authorities ordered the closure of markets as a precautionary measure reported PTIPunjab shares a 532km border with PakistanAfter a tense night the residents of Pathankot and Jalandhar woke up to loud explosionlike sounds while air raid sirens were heard in Hoshiarpur Amritsar and Ferozepur reported PTI The district authorities in Pathankot have set up a 24X7 control room for public assistance Deputy Commissioner Aditya Uppal urged residents to immediately report any unidentified material or objects falling from the skyldquoIt has been observed that some people collect such items which can be dangerousrdquo said Uppal warning that legal action would be taken against anyone doing so He further advised that no one should approach or touch any such objects reported PTIMeanwhile in Haryanarsquos Sirsa locals reported blastlike sounds after midnight A police officer confirmed that debris from an unidentified metallic object had landed in a nearby fieldldquoWe were sleeping when we heard a loud sound In the morning we found a metallic object in the fields Defence personnel later collected the debrisrdquo a local villager saidIn Jalandharrsquos Kanganwal village an unidentified projectile landed in a residential area early Saturday injuring a migrant labourer and damaging several houses reported PTI ldquoI was near a window when something struck a water tank and shattered the windows of 45 housesrdquo a woman said The injured labourer suffered an arm injury and was hospitalized imdeiatlyLocal residents including Satinder Kumar Muskan and Surjit Kaur shared that explosions shook homes damaging water tanks windows and a car ldquoA red light flashed in the sky followed by a loud explosionrdquo Surjit saidAkshita Gupta Additional Deputy Commissioner Phagwara issued an advisory for closure of all markets except medical stores Malls and highrise buildings in the district were also closed In Kapurthala commercial establishments also shut downDebris from unidentified objects was found in Beas Jalandhar Ferozepur Pathankot Tarn Taran and other areas In Phagwara district a crater 78 feet deep and 1214 feet wide formed when an object fell between Khalyan and Sahni villages A similar crater appeared in Gurdaspurrsquos Chhichhrana villageTensions soared after the Indian Armed Forces launched precision strikes on militant camps in Pakistan and PoK following the April 22 Pahalgam attack which had crossborder links In response Pakistan launched 26 drone attacks from JampK to Gujarat on Friday nightSecurity forces thwarted multiple drone threats in Ferozepur Pathankot Fazilka and Amritsar In Ferozepur a projectile destroyed by Indian air defences landed on a house in Khai Pheme Ke village injuring three family members and setting a car and home on fire reported PTI Amid growing IndiaPakistan tensions locals in Khalyan village reported hearing explosions from the fields at around 240 amBesides Pathankot Jalandhar also heard loud explosionlike sounds on Saturday morning while air sirens were activated in Hoshiarpur Amritsar and Ferozepur officials confirmedJalandhar Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal urged people to avoid moving out in the open or in tall buildings as a precaution Markets in Jalandhar Cantt and Adampur were ordered to shut and malls and commercial highrises across the district remained closed He urged people to remain calm and vigilant amid the tense situation in the countryWith inputs from PTIatOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params