With yet another earthquake in neighbouring state rocking Ranchi, minimising damage from seismic activity in the district by strictly adhering to the building bylaws and National Building Code was one of the primary agenda in the meeting of District Disaster Management Authority on Monday.
As Ranchi comes in Zone 3 regarding earthquake vulnerability, much needs to be done to prevent losses, stated District Disaster Management Officer Manoj Singh during his presentation on disaster management plan.
“People in Ranchi tend to forget even basic safety rules while constructing buildings. For this, there is a need for setting up a Hazard Safety Cell at Ranchi Municipal Corporation to ensure that earthquake resistant technologies are implemented during construction,” stated State Project Officer Sanjay Kumar Srivastava.
Additionally, structures which will be unable to sustain earthquakes need to be surveyed at catalogued. For this, district administration will rope in Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra for technical expertise.
In the presentation, the need to formulate a disaster management plan specific to every department was highlighted. “A Disaster Management Plan had been formulated back in 2010-11, but it has not been updated. The updated Plan will be formulated soon, with district level-officers appointed as nodal officers,” stated Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Manoj Kumar.
For spreading awareness, State Government is planning to launch Mukhya Mantri Vidyalaya Aapda Prabandhan Yojna, Mukhya Mantri Swasthya Aivam Aspatal Aapda Prabandhan Yojna, Mukhya Mantri Audyogik/Khanan Aapda Prabandhan Yojna and Mukhya Mantri Samudayik Aapda Prabandhan Yojna.