SUBARNAPUR —- In order to successfully deal with possible heavy rains and flood-like situations in the coming rainy season and to review the district-wide preparedness, a table top exercise was organized by the Emergency Branch of the district administration under the chairmanship of Collector Dr. Nruparaj Sahu at the Subarnapur Collectorate Conference hall on Thursday. All the departments of the district participated in it and presented their preparedness and action plan.Subarnapur ADM (Rev.) Rajendra Majhi, ADM (Gen.) Anjalina Pradhan, CDO cum EO ZP Aswini Meher, CDM & PHO Usharani Das were prominently present in this program. The exercise was conducted by Deputy Collector (Emergency Branch) Rajesh Sahu.Various departments presented information about the human resources, equipment, rescue materials and necessary resources available during floods and heavy rains through Power Point Presentations (PPT). The concerned officials also shared their experiences of how normal life returned to normal within four days due to the coordinated efforts of fire, electricity, urban development and other departments during the Kalbaisakhi and wind-rainstorm that occurred on May 28.In the exercise, flood-prone and sensitive areas of all six blocks of the district were identified and detailed discussions were held on how to evacuate people to safe places in case of a possible disaster, how to conduct rescue and relief work. The district administration worked with the goal of ‘zero loss of life’ and emphasis was placed on ensuring that no one is deprived of relief and rescue services.The block level officers discussed with the district level officers and the State Relief Commissioner (SRC) to maintain continuous coordination, conduct rapid assessment of damage and provide ex-gratia and other assistance to the eligible beneficiaries. The Agriculture Department made a presentation on the process of assessment of damage to agricultural land. The district administration advised all the departments to adopt a preparedness-oriented approach rather than a relief-oriented one. It was emphasized to strengthen the advance preparedness by prioritizing humanity, arrange warehouses for storing Red Cross relief materials and each department to keep its own alternative action plan (Plan-B) ready. In addition, various departments were advised to analyze their strengths and weaknesses and work in a coordinated manner in any situation. Finally, the district administration urged all the departments to always be alert, prepared and committed to public service. Report — Ugrasen Karmi.
Zero casualty target priority: Table top exercise -26 in heavy rainfall / floods in Subarnapur.
