PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) reviewed the preparations for the upcoming Char Dham Yatra mock drill, scheduled to be conducted on April 24 by NDMA in collaboration with the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA). A coordination and orientation conference was held on Wednesday with the officials from all Char Dham districts and various line departments.
During the session, NDMA senior consultant major general (retd) Sudhir Bahl provided detailed insights into the planning and execution of the mock drill. He stated that the aim of the mock drill is to assess and enhance the preparedness and response capabilities of all stakeholders involved in the pilgrimage. The drill will be conducted under the Incident Response System (IRS). Bahl also shared that agencies like SDRF, NDRF, police, fire services, and others will serve as observers during the drill. The State emergency operations centre at USDMA will oversee the execution of the exercise.
He stated that the mock drill will test inter-departmental coordination and identify areas needing improvement to ensure a smooth and safe pilgrimage. Bahl issued crucial safety guidelines for the Char Dham Yatra, including assessing the capacity of hotels and dharamshalas to accommodate stranded pilgrims in case of a disaster, providing timely weather alerts and mapping high-risk zones such as landslide-prone areas.
He recommended exploring satellite-based communication systems in regions with poor network coverage. The mock drill will simulate various disaster scenarios including road accidents, helicopter crashes, earthquakes, fires in hotels and dharamshalas, stampedes at crowded locations, adverse weather events, floods, lightning strikes, landslides and avalanches. It will also evaluate how local administration coordinates with central agencies such as the Air Force, Army, ITBP, NDRF and paramilitary forces in disaster response, he added.
