Timely training of personnel, rescue measures and awareness programmes implemented and conducted with right intent, dedication and concerted efforts can bring down the impact of damage caused by disasters to the least, said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday.
Addressing the two-day 3rd Regional Conference on Disaster Management, organised under the aegis of National Disaster Management Authority, Yogi Adityanath said, “Strict vigilance and prior awareness are essential to control the impact of disasters. Timely training of personnel and rescue measures implemented and conducted with right intent only can bring down the impact of damage caused by disasters.”
Emphasising the inclusion of disaster management and road safety in school curriculum, the chief minister said that if people knew what precautions they should take during floods, earthquakes, lightning, and fire mishaps, the loss of lives and property can be prevented.
On the occasion, Yogi also called for implementing an ‘Early Warning System’ to control deaths due to lightning strikes, particularly in Mirzapur and Sonbhadra districts. While appreciating the role of Aapda Mitras in the prevention of disasters, the chief minister also stressed on involving gram panchayats in this work and increasing the number of Aapda Mitras.
A ‘flood atlas’ developed by National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Hyderabad was also unveiled by the chief minister on the occasion.
In the inaugural session of the two-day conference, referring to the three types of calamities (adi daivik, adi bhautik and adi dahik) mentioned in Bhartiya Manisha, the chief minister also discussed the efforts being made by the state government in relation to all three.
Referring to the special geographical conditions of Uttar Pradesh, the chief minister also apprised everyone about the ongoing efforts for a permanent solution to curb floods, which have been causing huge loss of life and property in the state every year. The chief minister said that till a few years ago, 38 districts of UP were affected by floods every year and today their number had been reduced to only four districts.
Sharing the efforts behind this success, the chief minister said that when the government was formed in 2017, he received a file of Rs 100 crore related to Elgin Bridge regarding flood protection. Such a huge amount was spent at one place every year. In such a situation, he himself inspected the site and decided to channelise the river by dredging it. As a result, Bahraich, Gonda and Barabanki were saved from floods, and instead of spending Rs100 crore, only Rs 5 crore was spent.
Expressing the need to stop road accidents, the chief minister said, “Nearly 30,000 people die due to road accidents. This needs to stop. Awareness must be raised.”
Extending best wishes for the two-day regional conference, the chief minister said that there were nine such states of North India which were frequently affected by disasters and to minimise these, this two-day event organised in UP, a state with the largest population of the country, would prove to be very important. Representatives of the states of Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh, representatives of various agencies related to disaster management and subject experts also participated in the conference organised at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan here.