The Union government is in the process of preparing an updated model civil defence manual aimed at strengthening civilian preparedness during times of war and large-scale disasters, officials familiar with the development said. The revised manual, being worked on by the Directorate General of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards (DGFSCDHG), is expected to address gaps exposed during recent nationwide mock drills and reflect emerging security and disaster-related challenges.

The DGFSCDHG, a federal agency under the Union home ministry, is the nodal authority responsible for planning, coordinating and monitoring civil defence exercises across the country. The new manual will serve as a comprehensive guide for civilians, civil defence volunteers and state authorities, and will be enforced during emergencies such as armed conflict, aerial attacks, or major natural and man-made disasters.

Focus on Vulnerable Civil Defence Towns

Officials said the revised manual will place special emphasis on India’s 244 identified civil defence (CD) towns, which are considered vulnerable due to their strategic, industrial, infrastructural or geographical importance. These include major urban centres, border districts, industrial hubs, and areas housing sensitive installations such as nuclear facilities, oil refineries and military stations.

As part of the update, the DGFSCDHG is reviewing the status and specific requirements of each of these 244 towns. State-specific training modules will be designed, taking into account regional challenges, threat perceptions, population density, infrastructure capacity and past performance during drills. The exercise may also lead to the addition or removal of towns from the existing list, based on fresh vulnerability assessments.

Officials said this review has been informed by lessons learned during two nationwide mock drills conducted earlier this year, which revealed inconsistencies in preparedness levels across states and districts.

Lessons From Operation Sindoor

The urgency for revising the civil defence manual was underscored during Operation Sindoor, a large-scale national exercise conducted in May this year to test India’s preparedness for war-like situations. During the operation, the DGFSCDHG directed and monitored mock drills across hundreds of districts, involving civilian populations, state administrations, emergency services and the armed forces.

The first civil defence exercise under Operation Sindoor was conducted on May 7 across all 244 civil defence districts and 150 non-civil defence categorised districts. The drills simulated aerial attack scenarios, with air raid early warning circuits activated in coordination with the Indian Air Force. Complete blackout measures were undertaken in several areas to test compliance and public response. Exercises were also held at sensitive locations such as nuclear and military installations, oil refineries and other critical infrastructure sites.

A second round of drills was conducted on May 31 in around 150 districts located in states and Union territories adjoining the Indo-Pak border. These exercises focused on border-area vulnerabilities, evacuation protocols, coordination between civil authorities and security forces, and civilian response during heightened security situations.

While the drills were significant in scale, officials acknowledged that their execution varied widely across states. In some places, the exercises were conducted effectively, while in others they were criticised as poorly coordinated and superficial.

Need for Uniform Guidelines

The absence of a standard, updated civil defence manual was cited as a key reason for the uneven quality of drills. In July, the government had acknowledged in Parliament that several shortcomings were observed during the exercises, including outdated air raid warning systems, insufficient training of civil defence volunteers, lack of community awareness, and weak coordination mechanisms.

Earlier media reports had pointed out that some mock drills were carried out in a “slapdash manner” due to the lack of clear, uniform guidelines for wartime civil defence operations. Officials said the revised manual aims to address these issues by laying down clear procedures, responsibilities and communication protocols for all stakeholders.

The new manual is expected to include updated instructions on air raid precautions, blackout procedures, evacuation planning, shelter management, first aid, firefighting, communication during emergencies, and coordination with the armed forces and disaster management agencies.

Massive Training Drive Planned

Alongside the updated manual, the DGFSCDHG is planning a large-scale training programme to build capacity at the grassroots level. According to officials, a mass training initiative for 500 master trainers will be launched within the next two months at vulnerable civil defence locations across the country.

These master trainers will receive specialised instruction on new challenges, threat scenarios and revised civilian preparedness measures outlined in the updated manual. They will then be responsible for training approximately 90,000 civil defence volunteers nationwide, ensuring that the revised guidelines are disseminated quickly and uniformly.

“Civilian preparation needs to be updated and requires much more attention at many places,” an official said, adding that the training will focus not only on war-like situations but also on disaster response, given the increasing frequency of extreme weather events and industrial accidents.

Surge in Volunteer Interest

Officials said there has been a noticeable increase in public interest in civil defence volunteering following Operation Sindoor. At present, India has around 5.95 lakh registered civil defence volunteers. After the nationwide drills, nearly 80,000 new applications have been submitted through various online portals, indicating heightened awareness and willingness among citizens to participate in emergency preparedness efforts.

To support the revision of the manual and the expanded training programme, the DGFSCDHG is in the process of recruiting three senior consultants with prior experience in government disaster management agencies. These consultants will help design updated training modules, incorporate best practices, and ensure alignment with national disaster management frameworks.

Parliamentary Oversight and Future Outlook

In a written reply to a question in Parliament on July 29, the government said key lessons from the mock drills included the need for modernising air raid warning systems, improving training and capacity-building of civil defence volunteers, enrolling volunteers from diverse backgrounds, and intensifying community awareness campaigns.

Officials said the updated manual will be a living document, subject to periodic review as threat perceptions evolve and new technologies emerge. The aim, they said, is to ensure that civilians are not passive bystanders during emergencies but informed participants who know how to protect themselves and assist authorities.

Once finalised, the revised civil defence manual is expected to be shared with states and Union territories for adoption and implementation. It is likely to form the backbone of future nationwide drills and emergency preparedness initiatives.

As geopolitical uncertainties persist and climate-related disasters become more frequent, the government believes that strengthening civilian preparedness through updated guidelines and systematic training is no longer optional but essential for national resilience.