Government is strengthening and empowering the disaster management system

Government is strengthening and empowering the disaster management system

Being a mountainous region, Himachal Pradesh is a highly sensitive area for various types of natural and man-made disasters. Due to which it is very important for the disaster management system here to be more robust and empowered, currently due to dire circumstances like climate change, it will have to be strengthened in the field of modern technology, communication and capacity building. Although Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority was formed in the state with the formation of Disaster Management Act- 2005, but its operation and implementation on the ground started from the year 2016. In which District Disaster Management Authorities were formed in 12 districts of Himachal Pradesh and under this, the formation and implementation of State Emergency Operation Center in the state and District Emergency Operation Centers in all the districts was started. Its sole objective was to ensure prevention and planned management of 17 different types of disasters identified and listed in Himachal Pradesh.

Accordingly, a memorandum was signed by the Himachal Government with the French Development Agency (AFD) on a project worth about Rs 890 crore. Under this project, disaster management and climate risk reduction projects in Himachal Pradesh are to be given a direction, management and momentum. Under this program, Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority is to establish about 48 automatic weather stations in different parts of Himachal Pradesh in the coming time, which will provide advance warning on various types of disasters in the state such as landslides, intense floods, cloud bursts, climate change, heat waves, excessive rainfall and along with this, providing real weather forecast for agriculture and horticulture in Himachal will also be a priority. The government also believes that if this project is successful in the first phase, then it will also be established at the block level soon. In this context, the French Development Agency has agreed to provide cooperation in the field of strengthening and strengthening all the District Disaster Management Authorities and District Emergency Operation Centers of the state. Apart from this, if we talk about development in the field of disaster, then in the year 2018, satellite based phones were provided in all the district headquarters of the state and tribal sub-divisional centers of the state, mainly in Kaza, Bharmour, Kinnaur and Pangi, after which the official website of Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority was also launched in the same year. As through satellite based phones, we can use it extensively in various types of disasters for communication and in case of mountaineers getting lost in mountainous areas, accordingly, in the year 2024, keeping in view its utility, the government has decided to install about 73 additional satellite phones at other sensitive sub-divisional levels, which will be installed within the next one month. If we talk about the features of satellite phone, then it proves to be more effective in emergency response, weather forecast information, maintaining logistics system. With the aim of further strengthening the emergency response system at the district levels, the Himachal Pradesh government has developed an emergency management and response system, which will work in conjunction with the toll-free 112 telephone number and will be able to take immediate action on disaster related matters and execute various matters. This will make it very quick to settle disaster management related matters in the state. If we talk about the present time, various types of projects and capacity enhancement projects are being actively implemented in the field of disaster management, one of the achievements of which is to provide license and training to about 21 operators in HAM Radio or amateur radio in the state, and also to provide training and license to drone operators and pilots. Apart from this, a Project Management Unit (PMU) has been formed in the state by the Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority under the Disaster Mitigation Fund and apart from this, the main function of this unit is to review various types of projects in the state and provide budget. Last year, the state government in collaboration with NIC Shimla has started the School Safety Management Information System (MIS) for the safety of schools, in which the school disaster management projects of every school in the state are to be made in mobile app based software, under which at present, out of 18,383 schools, 9,910 schools have prepared disaster management plans of their schools in this app and the rest of the work is also in progress. Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority, Shimla has also established a toll free number 1077 and 1070 through emergency control rooms at the state and district levels under proper management and mitigation of disasters in the state, through which the general public can register information/complaints related to disasters in their area on this telephone number free of cost and get the related redressal immediately. According to an estimate, during the Covid period, more than 50,000 disaster related complaints were redressed immediately through the above toll free telephone numbers in Himachal Pradesh, which is a record in itself. Not only this, It is worth mentioning that the team of the Department of Computing Science and Computer Engineering of the Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi has installed about 30 sensors based on low-cost landslide warning system in four districts of Himachal Pradesh, Sirmaur, Kangra, Mandi and Kinnaur in the year 2023, apart from this, a project is underway to install such low-cost sensors in other landslide-affected areas of the state in future. Its sole objective is to reduce the frequency and damage caused by landslides, road accidents and other types of loss of life and property in Himachal Pradesh.

In the end, it would be appropriate to say that the Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority is continuously writing a saga of development every year and is constantly active and committed to reducing disasters, so for this the officers and employees related to disaster management in the state deserve congratulations. Here not only the disaster response system needs to be strengthened but also technology, development of early warning system and inclusion of new scientific methods should be included so that in future in Himachal Pradesh common people and precious natural wealth and private properties can be protected from these different types of disasters, so that the economic growth, progress, environmental protection and sustainable development of the state can be ensured in future.