Disaster-prone Kinnaur, Kalpa to get satellite phones

Bhanu P Lohumi

Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 25

Satellite phones will be distributed among key functionaries in Kinnaur district and the Meteorological laboratory at Kalpa will be strengthened to ensure smooth flow of information.

This was stated by Disaster Management special secretary DD Sharma while chairing a meeting to review midterm preparedness of south-west monsoons here yesterday.

He said Himachal was highly vulnerable to disaster and therefore, the list of vulnerable areas, assessment of warning, timely restoration of roads, water and other services, crisis management plan, stocking of medicines, life-saving drugs, essential food commodities and non-food items like petrol and diesel and natural terrain hazard review, constitution of response teams, development of health advisories becomes essential.

Sharma asked representatives of the Central water commission to install mechanism of early warning at the Satluj, Parbati and Beas basins and directed the Kinnaur administration to immediately install crash barriers at Wangto for which a sum of Rs 95 lakh had already been sanctioned.

Meteorological Department Director Dr Manmohan Singh said rain in July was 13 per cent less than the average rainfall. There were 60 per cent excess rains in Una while rains were below normal in Kinnaur and Lahaul & Spiti.

Representatives of the Health Department who were asked to keep surveillance of water-borne diseases said about 6 lakh zinc tablets had been distributed to children in the age group of 0-6 years.

He directed all departments and districts heads to provide loss and damage assessment as per the new criteria daily.

Representatives of the police, civil Defence, Public Works Department, Irrigation and Public Health, Indo-Tibet Border Police, Food and Civil Supply, Agriculture, Horticulture, Fisheries, Energy, Forest, Central Water Works, Bhakra Beas Management Board, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam and representatives of the Deputy Commissioner of all 12 districts participated in the meeting.