State Disaster Reduction Day themed ‘Building Community Resilience to Disaster’ held at the Conference Hall of District Administration Centre

Namchi, 18th September (IPR): The State Disaster Reduction Day themed ‘Building Community Resilience to Disaster’ was held at the Conference Hall of District Administration Centre, today. Organized by District Disaster Management Authority the Chief Guest for the occasion was Zilla Adhakshya (Namchi) Ms. Tshering Dem Bhutia accompained by DC (Namchi) Mr. M. Bharani Kumar, ADC (Namchi) Mr. Anant Jain, SDM (Namchi) Mr. Mahindra Chettri alongside officials and volunteers from Sri Satya Sai Organization, DDMA and Apada Mitra.
It maybe mentioned that today marks the 11th year anniversary of the 2011 earthquake in Sikkim which caused devastation on lives and property.
Addressing the gathering, Chief Guest Ms. Tshering Dem Bhutia shared her experience as ward Panchayat during the earthquake of September 18, 2011 and how she with her team aided the public at large. She also spoke about the challenges faced during the 2011 earthquake and underlined that one and all should equip themselves in disaster management skills as this skill will help in co-ordinating all aspects of disaster response and assist people affected by disasters. she further suggested that local Panchayat bodies and public of the various wards needs to be trained in handling disaster management, as she underscored that if at grassroot level they are trained then it will create a framework for responders to know what resources to be used. These respondents can ensure that all the stakeholders can work cooperatively as part of a disaster response.
DC (Namchi) Mr. M. Bharani Kumar spoke in-depth about the theme of todays programme and urged in developing a strong prevention, mitigation, preparedness and emergency response for pre, during and post disaster situations. He informed about the Disaster Management Act implemented in the state and urged the gathering to take active part in basic life saving training imparted by National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and during various mock drills. With this kinds of training, Sikkim can be a pioneer in disaster management skills and added that collective efforts from departments, Non-governmental organizations, volunteers and other stakeholders can assist in reducing the impact of any types of man made or natural disaster. Mr. Bharani also spoke about the Apada Mitra scheme and how the participants of this scheme have learned to respond to their community’s immediate needs in the aftermath of a disaster thereby enabling them to undertake basic relief and rescue tasks during emergency situations such as floods, flash-floods and landslides. Moreover, he added that educational institutes in the district needs to frequently conduct disaster preparedness drills in order for the students and other staffs to equip themselves.
DSO (Namchi) Dr. Urgen Sherpa in a power point presentation spoke about the importance of disease surveillance in case of disaster, he said that it is paramount to immediately detect and respond to diseases which can be born as a consequence of any disaster.He added that it is important that the health infrastructure should be earthquake resistant, adequate strengthening of healthcare manpower should be maintained. He informed that psychological support during disasters is extremely important as there are chances that a wide range of mental health problems arising in the aftermath of disasters can crop up. The psychological support will help individuals, families and groups to build human capacities and face issues.
District Project Officer Mr. Abhishek Kharel briefed about the various aspects of earthquake in a power point presentation. The presentation entailed how to survive the earthquake and to take necessary precautions. He also highlighted the damages caused during the September 18th, 2011 earthquake and spoke about the various measures undertaken by the concerned departments such as establishing of relief camp, utilization of officials, staff and volunteers and other pertinent preparedness measures.
State President Sri Satya Sai Organization Mr. Poonam Pradhan also shared the organizations success stories of the relief operation conducted during the landslides, flood, COVID-19, earthquake and during many more disasters. The rescue operations were carried out in Sikkim, West Bengal, Nepal and other places. He added that the volunteers of the organization has been given proper training by DDMA and NDMA. These voluteers have been upskilled and are dedicated in helping communities and public at large in creating a safer environment.
During the course of the programme various individuals were felicitated for their contribution in tackling disasters, they are, SHO Fire and Emergency Services (Namchi) Mr. Bishal Rai, (Head Surveyor) Mr. Tikaram Ram Chettri, Revenue Surveyor Ms. Nima Lhamu Bhutia and Quick Response Team Member M/S Patel Engineering Pvt Ltd Mr. Pradeep Rai.