AGARTALA, August 15 (TIWN): The state government is contemplating to review disaster preparedness of the buildings constructed under the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY), considering vulnerability to different climatic hazards in the state, official sources said. A highly placed source in the state disaster management authority said that ten models of IAY houses were being allotted for choice to the IAY beneficiaries till date.

“All existing ten models would be reviewed by trained engineers of RD and Panchayat department considering their vulnerability to climatic hazards, impact of climate change, maximum use of local low cost materials, acceptability of the community, cost factors, involvement of disaster resistant features easy to understand by the beneficiary”, the source said.

He added that number of models allotted under IAY would be revised and reduced to five. The first draft of the model was readied in December, 2013. The IAY buildings would henceforth incorporate plans for a sanitary toilet as well. The state disaster management authority recently decided that certified masons trained from the Construction Workers’ Training Institute at Khumulwng would be inducted for public construction works as a move to reduce disaster impact possibilities.

The Department of Rural Development (RD) recently allotted Rs. 6 lakhs for training of 400 masons in the first batch of trainees at the institute. The new model would be used for IAY, Anganwadi Centre (AWC) buildings, Community Health Center (CHC) buildings and schools in the rural areas as well, the source said. He added that the RD Department was recently asked to conduct an exercise to figure out the salient features of the new model.