People in some border villages of the Ferozepur district in Punjab began moving to safer areas amid soaring tensions between India and Pakistan.
Other villagers near the International Border (IB) with Pakistan in Amritsar and Tarn Taran border districts, however, remained calm with people carrying on with routine work on Wednesday.
Indian armed forces early Wednesday carried out missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), including the Jaish-e-Mohammad stronghold of Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba's base in Muridke.
Villagers in Ferozepur said they have begun shifting their belongings despite no official evacuation orders from the Border Security Force, Indian Army, or any government agency so far.
They said the decision to move, especially for women and children, was their own.
Tendi Wala, Kalu Wala, Gatti Rajo Ke, Jhugge Hazara, Navi Gatti Rajo Ke, Gatti Rahime Ke, Chandiwala, Basti Bhanewali, and Jallo Ke were among the villages from which people were leaving.
Kakku Singh (63), a resident of Babmha Haji village in the Mamdot area, said that he had come to meet his two daughters who had been married in Kalu Wala.
Notably, Kalu Wala village is surrounded by the Sutlej River on three sides and Pakistan on the fourth.
"When I heard the news about India's action in the morning, I was worried about my daughter and their families. Now I have come here not only to meet them but also to ensure that they go to my village till the time the situation becomes normal," said Kakku Singh.
Pachho Bai (58), an elderly lady from Tendi Wala village who had been packing the clothes along with her daughter-in-law, said that she is feeling concerned because their house is situated just 2 km away from the IB.
"We are six members in the family. My husband and my son have gone to work right now, but we are planning to move soon to the house of some relative. This is why I am doing the packing work," said Pachho Bai.
Some villagers could be seen taking their belongings, like beds, coolers, washing machines, refrigerators, and food grain containers, on tractor trolleys to their relatives.
However, there were many villagers who despite the tense situation between the two neighboring nations, were keeping their spirits high. Surjeet Singh from Tendi Wala village said he is proud of the Indian Army.
Ferozepur Deputy Commissioner Deepshikha Sharma Wednesday said that there is no reason for panic in the district as of now.
She said that neither the army nor the district administration has issued any directive to evacuate border villages and assured that the entire administration is fully alert and prepared.
In border villages in Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts, however, people remained calm.
Gurmeet Singh, a resident of the border village Chinna Bidhi Chand in Tarn Taran, said there was no panic in the village. Children were at their homes due to the school closure announced by the district administration.
Sucha Singh, who lives in the border village Naushera Dhalla in Tarn Taran, said people are busy with their day-to-day work and farmers are in their fields. He said no government official has asked them to leave their homes or move to safer places.
Another villager in the border village in Tarn Taran district said no one asked them to leave home. "There is a peaceful situation in the village," said the villager.
Border villages of Attari, Mahawa, Pul Mohra and Bikhwind in Amritsar district also appeared calm.
At Attari, a villager said they were getting calls from relatives from other places to know about the situation. The situation was peaceful and they were not scared at all, he said.
However, farmers who have agricultural land beyond the barbed fencing were not allowed to go to their fields as gates remained shut at all the Indo-Pakistan borders of Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts.
The Amritsar international airport has been closed, and the director of the airport communicated in writing that all commercial, civil domestic, and international flight operations are suspended till 5:30 am on May 10.
All educational institutions remained shut on the order of the Deputy Commissioner in Amritsar. Meanwhile, people queued up at some fuel pumps to refuel their vehicles.
The military strikes, code-named Operation Sindoor, were conducted early Wednesday, two weeks after 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed in a terror attack in Kashmir's Pahalgam.
