Additional Chief Secretary (Environment, Science & Technology) Sarojini Ganju Thakur said that action strict action needs to take at various levels to implement Disaster Management Plan in the State. Thakur stressed upon the need for swift, timely and appropriate action to avoid the contingency from the earthquake, flash floods and other natural or man made hazards as Himachal is lies on the epicenter and in the past few years cloudburst are accruing regularly and taking many lives . She said that State Government had taken a slew of concrete measures for disaster management. The State Government had recently entered into an MoU with Gujarat Government to set up a geo-informatics centre, named as Aryabhatta Geo-Informatics and Space Applications Centre (AGISAC) to carry digital planning of the State under the supervision of Department of Science, Technology and Environment on the analogy of Bhaskaracharya Institute of Space Applications and Geo-Informatics (BIGSAC), said she.
Sarojini Ganju Thakur said that keeping in view the changing climate pattern, the State Government is planning to set up a Centre for Climate Change, Disaster Management, Snow and Glacier Studies. This centre aimed at scientific study of the impact of climate change in the State and initiation of remedial steps to slow down the impact besides changing the cultivation practices suitable to climate change to ensure livelihood security, said she. She urged various Departments to formulate a manual and lay down the priorities for short term and long term for Disaster Management.
