AGARTALA, Oct 13 (TIWN): Along with the whole world, state Tripura also celebrated International Day for Disaster Reduction, which is held every 13 October, in an attempt to spread and raising awareness among people about the importance of reining in the risks that they face during natural disaster. A huge rally kicked off at Agartala City on Thursday, on the occasion of International Day for Disaster Reduction. Tripura Police, NDRF and other organizations became a part of the rally. Various messages were given throughout the rally by various banners as: ‘The earthquake doesn’t kill, but the buildings kill’, ‘To go under table or bed during a quake’, ‘To take important items, medicines before go to safe place during earthquake’, ‘Not to make homes at Hills corner’, ‘Take initiative of flood emergency situation’ etc. After many earthquake shocks Tripura felt, the disaster management dept. came in the limelight in Tripura.

But state Tripura although undergoing massive earthquake risks and every year state is flooding during monsoon, but the awareness about disasters is yet to come not only among the masses, but Tripura Govt is also showing full negligence in it.

Once a major earthquake comes, people in Capital City Agartala will not even find a place to go out as the buildings are made in such unorganized manner that there are least chance of safety if earthquake comes. Many hostels, offices are so much congested that  there is hardly any safe-place can be found during earthquake. 

In 2016 state witnessed atleast 5 earthquakes, but state’s disaster management although very much trained, but has been proven unhelpful in emergency times.

Also the Govt was advised to construct houses with bamboos under PMAY scheme keeping in mind about the earthquake risks in state, and to increase bamboo demands more. But PWD Minister rubbished the idea by saying, ‘bamboo made homes people will not accept’.

Floods in Northern part of Tripura & few other subdivisions are annual reports of state. Whereas Assam is known as regular sufferer from such disasters like flood, but every year households become homeless during monsoon, especially in North Tripura. In 2016 also more than 1000 homeless recorded during the whole June/ July months.

Apart from natural disasters, there are man-made disasters held at Agartala City, and few recently at Dharmanagar when due of lack of basic safety machineries labours died while working inside tankers and wells. Police, Fire Brigade just remained as the silent spectators of their deaths.

Disaster management during the whole year, help the people from Dasami-ghat & by showing various demos, but when it comes time for action--- they proven as failed.

Tripura govt. administration also lacks seriousness about disaster risks. There would be hardly any Earthquake proof building in Tripura. Many schools, offices are decade-old, which without any natural threat also many collapse anytime.  Lack of E-Governance & satellite monitoring also reflects dead-skeleton structure of Tripura administration.

In Northeast Industry Summit-2016 the book published by FICCI named “Leveraging the digital connect : North Eastern India”, the same issue was raised about NE zone disaster risks,  which was published by Manik Sarkar himself.