Pathanamthitta draws up plan to prevent disaster damage
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Faced with back-to-back floods and other weather-related disasters since the devastating deluge of 2018, the district administration is now drawing up a first-of-its-kind resilience plan to map disaster hotspots and put preventive measures in place before the next crisis strikes.
The initiative, aimed at shifting the focus from post-disaster relief to advance risk reduction, follows Chief Minister V.D Satheesan announcement during his visit to the district earlier this month to assess rain-related damage. District Collector A Nizamudeen on Thursday convened district-level officers from various departments to work out a scientific, area-specific plan.
A key focus will be strengthening early warning and public alert systems, particularly downstream of dams and along flood-prone stretches of rivers. The administration also plans to strengthen its database of households in vulnerable areas and map flood-prone zones based on varying levels of risk under different rainfall and flood scenarios.
The proposed system will enable location-specific alerts and, where feasible, indicate the evacuation centre or relief camp to which residents should move during an emergency.
Landslide hotspots will similarly be identified and mapped at the local level, with the findings shared with local self-government institutions for preventive action. Depending on the nature of the risk, measures such as soil conservation, drainage management, changes in land use and cropping patterns, and safer construction practices will be considered.
The administration will also explore pooling funds under Soil Conservation programmes, MGNREGS, local body schemes and other programmes for preventive works.
Drought and water security will form another major component, with measures including water storage, groundwater recharge, check dams, better use of irrigation infrastructure and conservation of existing water sources. The Agriculture, Irrigation and Soil Conservation departments, local bodies and MGNREGS will work together on these interventions.
The plan will also identify roads, bridges and culverts repeatedly damaged by floods and extreme weather and explore long-term engineering solutions, including improved drainage, elevated road sections and strengthened bridges, instead of repeated temporary repairs.
“Our approach should not be to wait for heavy rain, flooding or a landslide and then start responding. Resilience means identifying the vulnerable locations in advance, understanding the risks, deciding what preventive measures are possible and using the resources of different departments in a coordinated manner,” the Collector said.
The plan will identify priority interventions, implementing departments, funding sources and response capacity of the police, Fire and Rescue Services and other agencies. A workshop involving departments, elected representatives and stakeholders will consolidate the proposals before the plan is submitted to the government as a proposed pilot initiative.
Superintendent of Disaster Management Ajith Sreenivas presented proposals on early warning, monitoring, communication and evacuation systems, drawing on models adopted in other countries.
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