Odisha sets up 24×7 helpline to evacuate students from Jammu amid India-Pak tensions

Bhubaneswar: In response to escalating military activity between India and Pakistan, authorities are arranging the safe return of Odia students studying in Jammu. The move follows an evacuation order issued for the Central Sanskrit University after a Pakistani drone strike Thursday night.

The Odisha government has opened a 24-hour control room at the Odisha Resident Commission in New Delhi to assist students. Families can contact the helpline numbers 7428135044 and 011-24679201.

A special five-member team has also been deployed to coordinate and oversee student movements.

India’s Ministry of Defence said the Indian Air Force successfully neutralised missile threats targeting 15 cities across Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Gujarat late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. India used Russian-made S-400 air defence systems, known domestically as the “Sudarsan Chakra,” to intercept the missiles. Simultaneously, Israeli-made Harpy drones were used to strike multiple locations inside Pakistan.

Among the confirmed destroyed targets was Pakistan’s HQ-9 air defence system in Lahore. Drone strikes also damaged Rawalpindi’s cricket stadium, according to a statement from the Ministry of Defence.

The joint Indian armed forces operation, code-named Operation Sindoor, targeted strategic sites in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, Sialkot, and Bahawalpur. From the Arabian Sea, the Indian Navy’s warship INS Vikrant also launched missiles at the port city of Karachi.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told an all-party meeting that more than 100 Pakistani terrorists were killed in retaliation for the recent Pahalgam attack, in which 26 Hindu tourists lost their lives.

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