Steps urged to reduce losses during disasters

Report Zahiruddin, Chitral

Participants of a workshop on Friday stressed the need for putting in place disaster risk management plans at provincial and municipal levels.
The workshop on formulating district disaster management plan was organised by the Pakistan chapter of the Focus Humanitarian Assistance, an international group of agencies established to complement the provision of emergency relief, and was attended by representatives of different civil society organisations.
The participants called for ‘disaster conscious’ approach and taking concrete steps so that in future the loss of life and property in natural disasters could be reduced.
They said that due to its location and topography, Chital was more vulnerable to natural disasters. Landslides and erosion, snow and avalanches, glacier bursts and flash floods posed threat to the area, they said.
Over the years, they said, the frequency of natural disasters had increased causing colossal losses in the area and rendering hundreds of people homeless.
Those who spoke at the workshop included Chitral DCO Mutasim Billah Shah, regional programme manager of Focus Amir Mohammad, programme officer Wali Mohammad and Dr Mir Afzal Tajik.
They said government agencies, NGOs and civil society organisations needed to make concrete and integrated efforts where every one had a defined role to play at the time of disaster.
They said areas in the district vulnerable to disasters should be identified and measures be taken to minimise damages during disasters.
The participants also called for an early warning system and informing people on time.