Harish Rawat for rehabilitation of 350 disaster-prone villages

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, July 7

Chief Minister Harish Rawat has demanded immediate rehabilitation of 350 disaster prone villages in the state.

Harish Rawat, who met National Disaster Management Authority member NC Marwah here, today said these villages required immediate rehabilitation. “The state is facing difficulties in the rehabilitation of the villages due to limited resources”, said the Chief Minister.

He said the participation of the community was essential to deal with natural calamities. He said efforts would have to be made to train local people, especially women, to enhance their abilities to deal with such exigencies.

He said the National Cadet Corps, National Service Scheme Scouts, the youth and women groups must be linked to disaster management.

Harish Rawat said while dealing with the landslide issue, special attention would have to be paid to the Joshimath- Badrinath stretch.

He said Uttarakhand was an earthquake-prone area and fall under the high seismic active e-zone. Thus, the state government was preparing a project plan to get primary and junior high schools in pre-fabricated structure mode. Besides, at least one earthquake-proof community hall would be constructed in every village.

Chief Minister Harish Rawat said, “Lately, there has been a change in the nature of rivers. Their direction has changed following constant deposit of debris. This also causes floods in nearby regions. The only solution to this problem is finding a procedure to remove the debris from the rivers. This may require a host of approvals. The Central Government can extend help in this regard. It is important to encourage farming in hill areas”, he said.

NDMA member Marwah said Uttarakhand could be a leading example for the country when it come to preparations for disaster management. He appreciated disaster management initiatives taken by Uttarakhand.

“Uttarakhand has not only constituted state disaster response force but has also efficiently utilided its services,” said Marwah.

He assured the Chief Minister of extending support to all disaster management centres in the state. He said since Uttarakhand was prone to disasters, the state’s request for civil helicopters would be given due consideration.