Contingency plans: High-level meeting reviews monsoon preparedness

Chief secretary directs DCOs to identify vulnerable spots.

LAHORE:

A meeting was held at the Civil Secretariat on Monday to review pre-monsoon preparedness and contingency plans.

The meeting was chaired by Chief Secretary Khizar Hayat Gondal. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Maj Gen Asghar Nawaz was also present.

NDMA officials and representatives of Flood Forecasting Division (FFD) Lahore, the WAPDA, the National Highways Authority, the railways and Pakistan Commissioner for Indus Waters, attended the meeting.

PDMA Director General Jawad Akram briefed the meeting about the state of preparedness for the 2015 monsoon season. Akram told the meeting that the central flood warning control room would start working from June 15. He said district control rooms would send it their data on a daily basis.

Gondal said that there was a need to improve the early warning system and ensure strategic deployment of boats and selection of camp sites for quick response. He said that repair work at river embankments should be completed ahead of rains. He said that the DCOs should visit the dykes and identify areas vulnerable to flooding.

The chief secretary also directed the provincial departments to extend its cooperation to the district administrations. “The departments should pay special attention to enhance their capability to deal with natural disasters. They should devise a comprehensive plan for provision of boats and other equipment to the district managements,” he said.

The chief secretary directed the officials to ensure adequate supply of petroleum products during a possible flood situation. He directed the WASA MD to make special arrangements for draining rainwater from Lahore during the monsoon.

The NDMA chairman said that efforts should be made to ensure the continuous operation of weather radars at Lahore, Mangla and Sialkot during the monsoon season. Livestock Secretary Nasim Sadiq said that the registration of farmers had been completed to provide them assistance in case of floods. He said that vaccination of cattle had also been started.

A representative of the Meteorological Office told the meeting that monsoon rains would start by the end of July and were expected to be normal.

A national conference on monsoon preparedness and contingency planning will be organised by the NDMA to incorporate inputs from the relevant provincial departments and UN relief agencies. An annual contingency plan will then been finalised.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2015.