Flash floods have wrought havoc in the State, more particularly in the Valley. It is after 109 years that we are once again confronted by nature’s fury and anger of this magnitude. Though human beings are usually helpless in the face of the wrath of nature, yet it does not mean that we should leave every thing to the pre-destined. Human history is replete with natural disasters and calamities of far grater magnitude. Yet as humanity must survive, and the fact that time is the best healer, people have to resort to fortitude and patiently face what befell them. We have to move forward.
We are aware that the Prime Minister and other Union Ministers, who visited the valley and Jammu region to assess the volume of loss suffered, were taken aback by the fact that the State had no programme of meeting the challenge of any natural calamity in particular. Unfortunately, the State had no cognizable civil defence system or organization which one could approach for rescue and relief operation in times of emergency. State Disaster Management Authority was almost non functional.
Without going into the ifs and buts of the issue, the Union Home Ministry has taken an emergency step of sanctioning Rs. 817 lakh for the state under the recently launched scheme of Mainstreaming Civil Defence in Disaster Risk Reduction. It is already known that 13 districts in the entire State have been identified as disaster prone districts and there were instructions from the National Disaster Management Authority to provide the basic structure of civil defence in these districts. At least the two capital cities of the State should have been provided with semblance of civil defence with trained personnel so that in times of emergency and disaster at last some support would be available to the affected people.
Out of the allocated sum 104 lakh rupees would be spent on providing infrastructure in 13 vulnerable districts of the State. A sizable voluntary force of trained personnel would be raised who can be deployed in times of emergency to provide some succour to the people in affected areas. The force would raise the awareness level of the people in regard to various aspects of a disaster like floods, fire, epidemic etc. And at the same time it can educate the people how best the effect of the disaster can be reduced. The fund is meant to augment civil defence system in Multi Hazardous Districts of the State and will fill a big gap that should not have been left void. Its absence was detrimental to the people who are affected by recent floods.
Now that funds are at the disposal of the State Government and there is no more scope of complaining about scarcity of funds, the onus is now on the State Government to set up the infrastructure in 13 identified districts without further loss of time. There is not a single day to wait for meeting this requirement. There has to be a time bound programme for completing the task. In fact the work on this project should be monitored by a senior and responsible minister and his office and regular reports should be submitted to the cabinet detailing the progress achieved. Accountability in this task is also a matter of priority and should be ensured.
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