District Disaster Management Authority Meeting Discusses Flood Preparedness In Hailakandi

Hailakandi: The disaster management authority meeting reviewed the administrative preparedness to tackle flood with the onset of monsoon was held here under the aegis of Deputy Commissioner Keerthi Jalli on Thursday. The meeting attended by all line departments sought to ascertain the preparedness of each department and the disaster-related interventions expected of the departments in the event of monsoon triggered disasters.

It discussed threadbare the unprecedented deluge that took place in June last year and the lessons learnt from it and the need to take remedial and preventive measures to deal with any exigency.

District Disaster Management officials have been directed to be cautious and take precautionary measures to warn people living in low-lying areas, and along the rivers of Katakhal, Dhaleswari and Barak. District Disaster Management officials, based on the rainfall alerts and forecast are required to provide regular alerts to the public. Where pre-emptive evacuation is required, evacuation will be carried without delay, the officials were told at the meeting.

Buildings and schools will be identified to function as relief centre. Adequate food will be made available to those evacuated and housed in the relief centres, in times of monsoon related disasters, officials were told.

Fire service and SDRF personnel are required to be adequately equipped with rescue equipment for rescue and relief operations, the Deputy Commissioner said. Country boats will be requisitioned to press them into service during rescue and relief operations.

APDCL staff have been asked to organize teams on standby to snap power supply during heavy rains and also to restore power lines, where they are felled by heavy rains accompanied by storm.

Similarly, Water Resources department should stock up enough sand bags to set up bunds to prevent flooding and to strengthen the embankments and to plug the breaches. The PWD was asked to keep the roads motorable so as to maintain the flow of Gratuity Relief items to the nearby flood affected areas and to remove encroachments from water bodies to ensure rain water drainage and prevent inundations into habitations.

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