GUWAHATI: In view of the upcoming flood season, the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) has taken up a holistic approach to enhance preparedness, reports revealed on Thursday.
The authority has outlined thematic categories – Coordination of Response, Relief Camp Management, Ensuring Continuity of Services, Critical Infrastructure Preparedness, Risk Communication, and Reporting and Damage Assessment – as key areas for this year’s preparedness efforts.
This decision came following a consultative meeting organised by ASDMA with 40 state and central departments in Guwahati on Thursday.
The meeting marked the culmination of a series of discussions involving agencies responsible for disaster preparedness, flood response and recovery.
During the coordination meeting, various action points for flood preparedness, as decided during consultations with different departments, were reviewed.
Discussions also included the State Disaster Relief Fund norms and rice distribution for flood relief.
The meeting also saw officials from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Fire & Emergency Services (F&ES) deliberate on measures for prompt response and recovery during floods.
Additionally, representatives from the North Eastern Space Applications Centre (NESAC) and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) were briefed on measures for early flood warnings in the upcoming monsoon season.
In 2023, eight individuals lost their lives, and over 1,11,258 persons across various districts including Barpeta, Biswanath, Bongaigaon, Chirang, Darrang, Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Golaghat, Kamrup, Kamrup (M), Lakhimpur, Majuli, Morigaon, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar, and Sonitpur were affected by floods.
