Safety on mind,post 26/11

The civic body will spend Rs 284 crore on strengthening Mumbai’s disaster management and fire brigade.

First in a series of projects will be an interactive web portal called ‘Mumbai Voice’,which will facilitate better management of disasters at a local level. “We have collaborated with a Harvard-based organisation for this. The purpose of this portal will be to ensure immediate response and citizen’s interaction for better disaster management,” said Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Disaster Management) S S Shinde.

The BMC plans to launch this portal by mid-year. “For better management of any disaster,it is important that we have the citizens’ cooperation. With this web portal,any person can log on and get information on the nature of the mishap. He can also give details he is witnessing in and around the area. His ideas will help the BMC to prepare strategies to deal with the disaster,” said Shinde. The web portal will also be accessible through GPRS-enabled mobile phones.

Considering the coastline of the city,the civic body also plans to undertake timely Seismic Microzonation studies to draw up strategies to prevent natural disasters like earthquake and tsunamis. “Such studies have not been carried out in any major urban area of the country. With this study we will be able to fully understand the spatial distribution of seismic risk and draw up preparedness plans,” said Phatak.

Such studies will entail systematic mapping of potential inundation areas also.

The civic body also plans to install early warning systems at various public places to warm people about any kind of emergency and has earmarked Rs 1 crore for this variable messaging system.

Meanwhile,as a token of gratitude and to pay tribute to the heroes of 26/11,the civic body has decided to grant Rs 5 lakh each to their kin.