Disaster preparedness project begins

VADODARA, Aug 9: If all goes well, cyclone-prone Gujarat could have a blue print for a community-based disaster preparedness plan in thre...

VADODARA, Aug 9: If all goes well, cyclone-prone Gujarat could have a blue print for a community-based disaster preparedness plan in three years time. The plan would be aimed at minimising damage, particularly human casualties, during cyclones.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, in association with the Indian Red Cross Society, has begun the three-year project which aims at involving people at the village level in evolving ways to minimise disaster-related damage. As part of the project, a five-day seminar on disaster preparedness began here on Monday.

In an exclusive interview to Vadodara Newsline, Senior Regional Programme Officer of the Federation Gert Venghaus said that initially, disaster preparedness workshops would be organised for Red Cross representatives in major cities across India, and subsequently the same exercise would be undertaken at the district and village levels.

8220;We want it to percolate down to the field level. And it is going to be a two-way process. We would provide the necessary inputs on cyclone warnings and other concepts at the village level, and in return would get information from those levels about how communities could be prepared for these disasters,8221; said Venghaus.

Venghaus, who is an expert on disaster preparedness, has been working on the subject in South Asian countries like Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and India. He said that a similar project in Bangladesh had worked efficiently and reduced civilian casualties.

8220;You don8217;t require hi-tech scientific gadgets to prevent extensive damage. It just boils down to how speedily one reacts to warnings at the field-unit level,8221; he said, and added that a simplified early warning system could come from the efficient use of technology like the Internet.

8220;We have websites which are exclusively devoted to cyclones and typhoons, and if one ensures extension of this message to the lower levels, we can avoid a horrendous post-cyclone scenario,8221; he said. According to him, the approach towards disasters should be pro-active rather than reactive.

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Two workshops have already been held in India, and on Monday the third one was inaugurated in Vadodara. Venghaus said the Vadodara workshop was important as Gujarat was a cyclone-prone state and there was a need to rope in people at the village and district levels in the state for the project.

8220;In three years time it could be possible for us not only to prepare a national disaster preparedness plan but also plans at the state level,8221; he said.

He lamented that despite the plethora of natural and man-made disasters in the country, Maharashtra was the only state which already had a preparedness plan. 8220;Apparently there is a lack of will to go ahead with the preparations,8221; said Venghaus.

But Venghaus says that once the plan is finalised, it would be essential to carry out drills to ensure that there is no glitch during an emergency. 8220;There have to be regular exercises which would help immensely during disasters,8221; he said.