SRINAGAR: Police in Indian Kashmir have warned residents to build underground bunkers to prepare for a possible nuclear war in the disputed region, which is on edge after a string of deadly border clashes.
The warning comes despite a ceasefire which took hold last week in the scenic Himalayan region, after the Indian and Pakistani armies agreed to halt cross-border firing that had threatened to unravel a fragile peace process.
“If the blast wave does not arrive within five seconds of the flash you were far enough from the ground zero,” says the notice, headed “Protection against Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) Weapons”.
It warns of “initial disorientation” from a nuclear attack, saying the blast may “carry away many prominent and familiar features”.
The instructions were issued Monday in a local English-language Greater Kashmir newspaper by the State Disaster Response Force, which is part of the police.
They vividly describe a nuclear war scenario to prepare residents to deal with “the initial shock wave”.
The notice tells them to “wait for the winds to die down and debris to stop falling”.
“Blast wind will generally end in one or two minutes after burst and burns, cuts and bruises are no different than conventional injuries. (The) dazzle is temporary and vision should return in few seconds,” it says.
It tells residents to build basement shelters “where the whole family can stay for a fortnight” and stock them with non-perishable food.
Continue reading at Indian officials warn Kashmiris of possible nuclear attack: Report
