Citizens confident govt stands with them in crisis, says CM Yogi; Recalls Bahraich child swallowed by croco
Lucknow, July 19: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday inaugurated the new building of the Uttar Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) headquarters. This building was constructed at a cost of over 200 crore rupees. The Chief Minister also launched the authority’s website and inspected the exhibition and the building and took detailed information about the work.
Chief Minister said that our resolve is to make Uttar Pradesh a state capable of dealing with every disaster, where every citizen can live with the confidence that the government is ready with them in times of crisis. This should be part of civic and national duty. The Chief Minister expressed hope that this center will instill new confidence in every citizen.
Chief Minister said that we often become active and express condolences after a disaster and widespread loss of life and property, but prior vigilance, preparedness, and awareness can minimize loss of life and property. There is a need to educate people about prevention through daily life, school curriculum, and family conversations. Recalling his childhood, the Chief Minister said that at that time, schools and families would discuss precautions to be taken during fires, earthquakes, and floods, as abnormal behavior in these events can cause harm. However, by making awareness a part of daily routine, loss of life and property can be controlled.
Yogi described the tendency to ignore incidents as dangerous. Emphasizing training, he said that the recruitment process for 45,000 Home Guards is being completed. Those trained as Disaster Mitras will be given priority in this recruitment process. Home Guards will also receive mandatory Disaster Mitras training. They are first responders. The government provides them with good facilities, honorarium, cashless health care of five lakh rupees, approximately 35-40 lakh rupees for families in case of an accident, and an additional five lakh rupees from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. The Chief Minister expressed hope that these facilities should not become a burden, but rather that their services should be used better for society.
CM Yogi also discussed natural and physical disasters such as floods, lightning, heavy rainfall, fires, and building collapses. He said that Uttar Pradesh is the first state to provide relief by classifying human-wildlife conflict as a disaster.
Chief Minister expressed grief over the incident that occurred in Bahraich two days ago, stating that a 12-year-old child was swallowed by a crocodile. Everyone knows about the sensitive areas where crocodiles live, and that they live within a radius of four to five kilometers throughout their lives. Therefore, avoid forceful interference with animals. The Chief Minister expressed grief that during such incidents, people keep making videos but do not pay attention to safety.
He reported that a total of 111 people had died in districts such as Fatehpur, Prayagraj, Kaushambi, Mirzapur, Bhadohi, Jaunpur, Azamgarh, Sultanpur, and Ambedkar Nagar. Expressing concern and displeasure at the authority meeting, the Chief Minister stated that efforts could be made to minimize these deaths.
He also emphasized the need to make the early warning system effective. On the third day of the meeting, the NDRF/FDRF and the National and State Disaster Management Authority coordinated and furthered that process.
He stated that in the future, technology could be used to enhance day-one disaster management, including satellite and remote sensing monitoring, AI-based risk mapping, predictive analytics-based early warning systems, mobile-based citizen alert systems, GIS-based decision-making and digital control rooms, and drone-based search and rescue operations.
Finance and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Khanna, Minister of State for Revenue Surendra Diler, Mayor Sushma Kharwal, Sarojini Nagar area MLA Rajeshwar Singh, Authority Vice Chairman Lieutenant General Yogendra Dimri, Principal Secretary (Revenue) Aparna U, Director General of Police Rajiv Krishna etc. were present on the occasion.
