77% of urban Ind fear prospect of war: Survey

At least 77 per cent of urban Ind fear the country could be involved in an armed conflict with another nation, said a survey on Friday.

Further, 75 per cent also worry about the prospect of terror attacks taking place in the country, according to the "Ipsos-Halifax World Affairs Global Threats Assessment" survey.

The results showed that urban Ind are concerned about all threats, whether about security, safety or health, though at the top of the heap was security.

"Pulwama attacks, followed by Balakot and post events have brought things to a head. Abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A though a bold step had brought things to brinkmanship. There is a looming threat perception. It has not been hunky dory for sometime," Amit Adarkar, CEO, Ipsos India & Operations Director, APAC, Ipsos, said in a statement.

Further, a majority of the Ind listed a number of threats facing the nation and these threats highlight concerns about preparedness.

While 73 per cent of urban Ind fear a major natural disaster occurring in India, 71 per cent urban Ind fear the outbreak of a major health epidemic, said the study.

A large majority of people, 70 per cent, also fear the threat of hacking into public, private, personal information systems for fraudulent or espionage purposes, the results showed.

Almost an equal number of people also fear for their personal safety and the security of their family and themselves being violated.

Interestingly, at least 79 per cent of urban Ind polled feel things are improving rather than worsening.

The survey, conducted between August 23 and September 6, involved 18,526 adults from 28 countries including India.

( With inputs from IANS )