SRINAGAR: In order to minimize the damage caused by the earthquakes and other natural disasters, the Jammu and Kashmir government is planning to set up state-of-art Emergency Operation Centers (EOC) in all 20 districts, as per media reports.
The move will minimise the damage caused by the natural disasters as the UT falls in the earthquake zone 1V and V and is highly prone to flood damage, according to a government statement.
The government of Jammu and Kashmir has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with NDMA, Government of India for the implementation of an Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) to coordinate disaster calls in Dial No 112, ANI reported.
The process of construction of the EOC has been started in Budgam district which will have a complete disaster management plan under National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) 2019 and it will be implemented in all districts.
Detailed attention will be paid to disaster risk prevention, mitigation initiatives and guidelines, building the capacity of all stakeholders in UT to deal with disasters and promoting community-based disaster management and roles for all relevant stakeholders and defining responsibilities with clarity.
For capacity building, around 1.5 lakh community volunteers will be engaged in three phases including 15,000 volunteers in the first phase, 35,000 volunteers in the second phase and 1, 00,000 volunteers in the third phase.
The survey report states that the focus is on building the capacity of all stakeholders to respond promptly to disasters in a planned manner so as to reduce loss of life and economic losses in various forms.
ANI reported that hazard mapping, hazard assessment, and impact assessment will be standardized for different sectors and regions while emphasis will be placed on forecasting and early warning of various meteorological events and hazards.
The Department of Disaster Management, Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction is working on identifying various hazards that threaten the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.
