loss of connectivity and damaged communication are challenges that have to be faced after the occurrence of a disaster. The additional chief secretary S Raju said this while chairing a meet with officials and district magistrates concerned a day ahead of the mock exercise to be conducted in four seismically vulnerable districts of the State and the State capital on Thursday.
Reviewing preparations for the mock exercise to be held by the State disaster management department with the assistance of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in Chamoli, Uttarkashi, Pithoragarh and Bageshwar districts, the additional chief secretary also gave necessary instructions to the district magistrates concerned through video-conferencing.
He said that loss of connectivity, landline telephone, mobile phone towers and roads was caused by various types of disasters. The officials will have to use their limited resources for rescue work while also work towards reopening the roads to enable rescue teams to reach the disaster affected area. Nodal officers should also be appointed at the district level, he added.
NDMA senior consultant VK Datta gave necessary guidelines through video conferencing to the four district magistrates concerned. He said that it had been observed that the weather tends to be inclement during most natural disasters which in turn delays the arrival of rescue teams. Stressing on the effective use of the available resources, Datta said that the first two hours after a disaster are considered ‘golden hours’ for saving more lives through rescue operations.
The district magistrates should hold a meeting every six months with the army and paramilitary officers in their area to maintain coordination so that the officer concerned can be contacted without delay when needed to conduct the rescue operation. He further said that the general public should also be made aware of what to do during and after disasters like earthquakes.
In case of collapse of the hospital building and helipad, the hospital should be operated in an open space. The people injured in the disaster should be given proper medical treatment and the status of hospital beds in nearby districts should also be known in case of increase in the number of injured persons, he said.
The district magistrates said that disaster effect on banking and ATMs tends to create a cash problem. The disaster management and rehabilitation secretary Amit Negi told the DMs to maintain a separate cash fund for immediate use in case of disaster.