By Dr Arvind Kumar
Leh tragedy has necassitated the urgency of installing early disaster warning system in Jammu and Kashmir and other disaster-prone areas. Thus far, the early warning system has been installed in coasatl areas to warn about cyclones and earthquakes. After the tsunami tragedy of December 2004, the UN launched in January 2005 comprehensive plans for a global early warning system to reduce the deadly toll of natural hazards, combining speedy transmission of data with training of populations at risk in a strategy that can save loss of human lives and property.
In India, the Disaster Management Act, which has been in force since 2005, has established National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The law also provides for “an enabling environment for institutional mechanisms at the State and district levels.” Provisions of the Disaster Management Act should be used to install early warning systems in the mountainous regions and the trans-Himalayan territory. At a time when there is no dearth of money and material, the advance warning systems can be installed with ease to save the people from falling prey to natural disastes.
