‘Disaster has the power to stop or halt development if not prepared’

April 28, 2022 20 Views No Comment

‘Uncertainty should not be a reason for inaction’

Morung Express News
Kohima | April 28

Experts on climate change say that the number of climate-related disasters globally has tripled in the last 30 years driven by climate change.

Similarly, over the years Nagaland has been experiencing climate induced disasters as an expert from the Nagaland Disaster Management Authority (NSDMA) said “we have been witnessing some extreme weather events in the recent past that are ‘new and terrifying.’”

Speaking at the workshop on ‘Strengthening community resilience to climate change and disaster’ at Hotel Vivor, Kohima, today, Rendemo Shitio, Assistant Manager (Response & Communication) NSDMA said erratic nature of rainfall, flash floods, landslides, hailstorms, cyclonic storm, cloud burst, lighting, thunderstorm etc., are all climate induced events.

Presenting a discourse on the ‘challenges in the context of climate change and DRR in Nagaland,’ Shitio observed that as the number of climate related disasters increases, the lives of the people are directly or indirectly impacted in all aspects.

Erratic nature of rainfall and the rise of temperature over the years, he said are all related to climate change, and while emphasising on the need for the people to have a serious thought processing on this.

According to him, climate and meteorological data analysis indicates a reason to worry, taking into consideration the frequent disasters that are occurring in the state.

‘Disaster has the power to stop or halt development if not prepared,’ asserted Shitio, noting that there are some gray areas observed even among governmental stakeholders. Though the state has huge offices, he noted that there is a total lack of workable departmental disaster management plans, departmental disaster risk reduction investment plans and policies as well as departmental disaster mitigation plans and coordinated disaster response efforts.

Hence, he stated that every individual should make disaster risk reduction (DRR) a way of life and be prepared rather than waiting for disasters to strike. “Individuals, government, businesses and decision-makers cannot be a stranger to disaster,” he asserted.

To this end, he suggested on finding where the risks are coming from and understanding the strategies to address the risk as it is ‘everybody’s business is to be safe.’

Shitio also advocated on avoiding accumulation of future risks and making investments to reduce vulnerability and exposure to hazard; redefining development activities in Nagaland and strengthening policy, institutions and capacity, and effective disaster risk management to facilitate climate change adaptation and contributing to broader resilience.

In his introduction speech, Johnny Ruangmei, Joint Chief Executive Officer, NSDMA said the main objective of the workshop is to understand the Sendai Framework and PM’s 10-point agenda on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). Along with this, it is also to develop an actionable plan for building disaster resilience in Nagaland, actionable plan for resilient city/town in the state and develop actionable plan of DRR and Eco-Tourism in Nagaland.

Disaster is no longer a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’ said Ruangmei, noting that people in the state have the ‘spirit of Titanic,’— they think disaster will not happen and do not prepare, and when reality hits, there are no solutions.
Advisor NSDMA, Kazheto Kinimi in his inaugural address said DRR and climate change adaptation have emerged as two key development issues that need to be incorporated into policy making, planning and implementation processes.

Emphasising on the importance of studies and data, he stated that achieving disaster resilience requires detailed scientific analysis and understanding of risks and vulnerability of different areas, which would help in developing realistic strategies for disaster prevention and mitigation in the state.

Kinimi expressed hope that through this workshop, participants would understand the issue better, try to achieve coordination amongst various departments and strive to strengthen community resilience to climate and disaster risks.

The two-day workshop was organised by the Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority, Home Department in collaboration with InsuResilience Solutions Fund (ISF) (Frankfurt School of Finance and Management); Swiss Re and Tata AIG.

Other resource persons include Andreas Bollmann, Faber Consultant; Eugen Doce, ISF; Col Sanjay Srivastava, Chairperson, Climate Resilient Observing Systems Promotion Council (CROPC); Dr Manoj KR Phukan, CSIR-NEIST, Jorhat and Kenilo Kessen, Project Scientist Nagaland State Climate Change Cell, NASTEC.

Source: https://morungexpress.com/disaster-has-the-power-to-stop-or-halt-development-if-not-prepared