I am not a think tank but simply a Lecturer in the discipline of Environmental Science at Govt.Higher Secondary School Khellani Doda. I would like to express my deep concern on the eve of one day program on Civil Defence and Disaster Management organised by the CD&SDRF Doda through the medium of this newspaper. I hope that the space should be given to my opinion in this esteemed daily newspaper on most humanitarian grounds. First of all, I would like to share my views on disasters in our country. According to me India is always been a disaster-prone country, with multiple states afflicted by different types of disasters. The impact of these disasters is exacerbated when an area is prone to multiple types of disasters. This study attempts to understand the impact of natural and man-made disasters on the people of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and Ladakh region in India as well as it also examines the resilience mechanisms adopted by the people, and identifies measures taken by the government in response to these disasters. To understand these disasters’ dynamics, we conducted both offline and online desk reviews for this study. The review suggests that both J&K and Ladakh regions are afflicted not only by multiple natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, avalanches, and landslides but also by the militancy and violence, which has caused unparalleled death and destruction. These natural and man-made disasters have adversely affected most aspects of life and development in the region. To mitigate the risks, effective disaster risk reduction and management systems, early warning systems and infrastructure need to be strengthened. In addition, community engagement needs to be enhanced with the goal of addressing the grievances of the population and engaging them in the design and implementation of sustainable development programs. Disaster risk management is our individual as well as collective responsibility; it is the role and responsibility of government to take right decisions at right time. Sir, I know your decision alone can’t bring all the change. It needs sustained efforts from all the stakeholders; you, us, and others need to join forces to make the best things happen. But with the introduction of disaster management in school education as a separate subject we will strengthen the efforts that improve our understanding of connections between disaster risk, knowledge and learning, and with the availability of trained resource persons to teach at school level we will raise a disaster conscious society and promote a culture of disaster resilience – it will show the way. `It is a good initiative. Good for J&K. Good for us. Bad for disasters. So why should we not introduce it now? Community should be prepared to tackle disasters. Now coming on the program. A One -day training program on ‘Basic Civil Defense and Disaster Mitigation’ (BCD&DM) concluded today at Govt.Higher Secondary School Khellani Doda. The program that commenced on 23rd August 2022 was organized by the CS&SDRF Doda in collaboration with Govt. Higher Secondary School Khellani DodaThe function was attended by Dy.SP Davinder Singh, Instructor Civil Defense and Disaster Management Doda, Principal Govt Higher Secondary School Khellani Doda Smt.Sachla Kumar ,Staff Members of the Higher Secondary School Khellani NCC and NSS volunteers of the same School.
The program was aimed at training students and faculty members to handle emergency cases during any disaster including fire incidents, giving CPR, earthquake, and snow avalanches which are common these days in the upper reaches of Kashmir valley. Speaking on the occasion, Principal of the School Sachla Kumari said, “Our goal is to a safer society by training the trainers and we are training the students and faculty members as trainers who in turn will subsequently train other volunteers and students. She also said that Jammu Kashmir is a disaster-prone union territory, particularly the Kashmir valley.Beside ,She said their rescue organisation cannot reach everywhere so it is very important that the community stays prepared.He said they are giving the students basic rescue training and when participants physically participate they learn easily.Earlier, Vice Principal of the School Sh.Eshan detailed the aims and objectives of the programme. He said that building capacity is an important component of Disaster Management for all.He also said that theoretical knowledge gives basic idea of the subject matter however practical knowledge is most essential to get firsthand knowledge and experience of disaster preparedness and providing first aid at the time of any incident is important to save lives.The report of the One – day programme was organized by Instructor, Dy.Instructor of Civil Defense Doda Dy.SP Davinder Singh. Neha Kotwal and NCC Coordinater and Sunil Kumar NCC Teacher of the same School conducted number of training sessions and a mock drill on fire fighting and evacuation, besides training on Basic Life Support and First Aid .Dy.SP. Davinder Singh who is the Dy.Instructor of Civil Defence and Disaster Management of Doda gave a detailed and breif lecture to students of Govt Higher Secondary School Khellani Doda on Natural Disaster in our Union Territory .He said that Jammu and Kashmir borders touch Pakistan in the west, China and Tibet in the north & east and Indian States of Punjab and Himachal in the South. Kashmir North and Kashmir South districts lie in Zone V. Gilgit, Chilas, GilgitWazarat, Muzaffarabad, Punch, Anantnag, Mirapur, Riasi, Udhampur, Jammu, Kathua,Leh, Ladakh and Tribal Territory districts lie in Zone IV.
Owing to a unique geo political and geographical setting, Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a multitude of disasters. Ranging from local incidents of fires up to catastrophic earthquakes, J & K has always paid heavily in terms of loss of life and property. However, in the absence of reliable records and information thereof, most of the events are either partially reported or exaggerated or even, at times sometimes not recorded at all. The occurrence of natural disasters can’t be stopped but their impact can be reduced. For this purpose there is need to co-operate with each other at all the possible levels- that is sharing of expertise in the respective
fields, monitoring and sharing of scientific data related to hazards, co-operation in issuance of warnings about floods, avalanches, landslides, dam breaches and so on. As far as earthquakes are concerned, all the Himalayan countries are equally likely placed with respect to this disaster. Unfortunately, we do not have any authentic and systematic past records of seismic activities in the entire Himalayan belt except a few fragmentary records of the recent past. There are, at least, four regions of the Himalayas where earthquakes of magnitude 8 or above are likely to occur in the near future. The 2005 earthquake of MW 7.6 has released only 1/10th of the stress generated within the region and remaining has to go in future great earthquakes. The damage occurred in Uri, Kupwara and Baramulla districts in the Kashmir province and in the Poonch town and its surrounding areas are along the Line of Control. This earthquake was the strongest over 120 years in the area. Efforts at all levels need to be taken to ensure whatever new structures are built
are able to withstand future major earthquakes. In a place like J&K , the major causes of increased vulnerabilities to natural disasters are: unplanned construction (e.g in Choglamsar area of Leh), over and unplanned exploitation of natural resources (for example, Dal Lake or deforestation in Gulmarg), unplanned urban growth, conflicts, weak institutional capacities, and climate variability and change. These emerging trends require that development practice is to be re- oriented so as to make the State more resistant to natural disasters. This new focus explicitly recognizes the links between Early Warning, Disaster Risk Reduction and Sustainable Development. The Met Centre at Rambagh , Srinagar caters to the meteorological needs of J & K. Any information related to weather and climate or weather related data of J&K can be had from this office. The office functions round the clock for the benefit of the people of the State and the Government as a whole.
Early Warning as a tool of Disaster Risk Reduction: Early warning has the potential to contribute significantly to minimizing losses as an important non-structural component of risk reduction. Early warning plays such a strong role in improving human security because it is one of the most effective measures for reducing negative impacts of threats and risks triggered by natural disastrous events. Early warning and other mitigation interventions are a cost effective way of Disaster Risk Reduction. Last but not lead to however, in order to highlight the future needs of the Met observatories in Jammu and Kashmir; the following demands shall be put forth before the administration: One Doppler Weather Radar and One Rain Gague Device in Leh, Jammu and Srinagar and one class one observatory in each district of Jammu and Ladakh
(The author is EVS Lecturer at Govt Higher Secondary School Khellani Doda. Views are his own)
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