Drones Disrupt Flights at Amritsar Airport

Flight services at Amritsar's Sri Guru Ramdas International Airport were suspended for nearly three hours on August 26 due to the sighting of three drone-like objects in the airspace, a first for the region. The drone activity was observed between 10:10 pm and 11 pm, prompting Air Traffic Control (ATC) to halt all flights for security reasons. An Air India flight from Delhi had to return after being in the air for 20 minutes and eventually landed at around 4 am the following morning. Local authorities, including the police and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), conducted searches but failed to identify the source of the drones. Speculation exists that the drones may have been related to Janmashtami celebrations, although no official complaints have been filed, and drone flying is prohibited within a four-kilometer radius of the airport. The incident raised significant security concerns, given the airport's proximity to the Indo-Pakistan border.