India, May 7 -- India closed at least 16 airports in northern and western parts of the country for civilian movement on Wednesday morning, hours after New Delhi carried out precision strikes on "terrorist infrastructure" at nine sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians two weeks ago.

The 16 airports are Leh, Thois, Srinagar, Jammu, Amritsar, Pathankot, Chandigarh, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jamnagar, Bhatinda, Bhuj, Dharamshala, Shimla, Rajkot, and Porbandar.

Authorities also put vital installations such as refineries and hydropower projects near border areas on high alert, people aware of the matter said. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which man...