According to latest media reports, 8 airports in India have been shut down amid growing tensions with neighboring Pakistan. The airports that have been asked to shut include Jammu, Srinagar, Amritsar, Leh, Kullu-Manali, Shimla, Kangra and Pathankot. It must be noted that all these airports are very close to the border.
An official notice stated that the airports have been closed for three-month duration but sources told that it is the outer limit and depending on the situation on ground, it can be annulled earlier.
The move comes after an Indian Air Force (IAF) chopper collided today morning in Jammu & Kashmir's Budgam. Police claimed of finding two bodies from the site.
The chopper crash happened in the backdrop of intense firing and shelling from across the border on the day IAF fighter jets crossed the Line of Control (LoC) and smashed a huge terror camp in Pakistan in a pre-dawn strike. The region has been on high alert amid threats of reprisal after fighter jets from India crossed the LoC demolishing Pak terror camp.
PTI said the entire airspace north of Delhi has also been vacated.
Meanwhile, Air Vistara tweeted that all flights from Jammu, Srinagar, Amritsar and Chandigarh are on hold due to the airspace restrictions.
All International Airlines heading to US and Gulf countries have been asked to carry extra fuels and also to use alternate routes if required. The Indian Airlines operators have been asked to suspend all flights to Pakistan. In addition CISF has been urged to intensify security n and around all the airports.
The Border Security Force and Army have been put on the highest degree of vigilance along the border. Authorities have also directed temporary shutdown of educational institutions in a 5-km radius along the LoC in Poonch and Rajouri districts. People living near the border areas have been asked to stay inside their homes and not go outside.
