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SRINAGAR : On the directions of Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, Minister for Health and Medical Education, Social Welfare and Education, Sakeena Itoo on Wednesday visited various South Kashmir districts and took stock of the prevailing situation following incessant rainfall.
During her visit, the Minister chaired separate review meetings at the district headquarters with the respective Deputy Commissioners and senior officers from the line departments to assess the preparedness and response measures being undertaken in view of the adverse weather conditions.
The Minister took a comprehensive review of the situation, including flood preparedness, functioning of emergency response mechanisms, restoration of essential services, availability of healthcare facilities, road connectivity, power and water supply, and arrangements for evacuation and relief, wherever required.
At Kulgam, the Minister chaired a comprehensive review meeting to evaluate the readiness of the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) for potential weather induced emergencies.
MLA Devsar, Peerzada Feroze Ahmad Shah; Deputy Commissioner Kulgam, Shahzad Alam,;ADC, Kulgam, Vikar Ahmad Giri, Assistant Commissioner Revenue, Assistant Commissioner Development and other district and sectoral officers of concerned departments were present in the meeting.
Reviewing the flood protection and mitigation measures undertaken by various departments and agencies, the Minister directed all concerned officers to maintain a high level of preparedness and ensure the close monitoring of water levels in rivers to effectively respond to any emergency. She stressed on early identification of weaker spots and strengthening the flood protection and mitigation measures along the vulnerable areas of Veshow, Vethyatru and other streams.
Sakeena Itoo underscored the need for taking up immediate flood mitigation works as well as long term proposals of flood mitigation in low lying and vulnerable areas of the district.
MLA Devsar also put forth vital observations and suggestions on the weather conditions and preparations for flood mitigation.
Earlier, Deputy Commissioner Kulgam and ADC, Kulgam presented a detailed overview of the district’s preparedness, highlighting department-wise mitigation strategies and the operational readiness of relief, rescue, and rehabilitation mechanisms.
At Shopian, Sakeena Itoo chaired a review meeting with the district administration and concerned officers to take stock of the prevailing weather conditions and the preparedness of various departments to deal with any eventuality at the Mini-Secretariat.
During the meeting, the Minister reviewed the availability of essential commodities, the status of power and drinking water supply, availability of medicines and other emergency stocks, and the preparedness of the concerned departments. She stressed the need to ensure uninterrupted essential services and directed officers to remain vigilant, particularly in vulnerable areas.
The Minister said that the government is closely monitoring the situation and is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of the people. She directed all departments to remain on high alert, maintain close coordination and ensure prompt response in case of any emergency.
The Minister also urged the public to follow official advisories, avoid unnecessary travel to vulnerable locations, and cooperate with the administration during the prevailing weather conditions.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Commissioner (DC) Shopian, Shishir Gupta; Additional District Development Commissioner, Dr. Nasir Ahmed Lone, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Dr. Zakir Hussain Faaz, Chief Planning Officer, Chief Medical Officer, Executive Engineers of Jal Shakti and KPDCL, Irrigation, besides officers from the Revenue, Police, Health, R&B, Municipal, Food, Disaster Management and other concerned departments.
At Pulwama, Sakeena Itoo also chaired a meeting to review the district’s preparedness for any flood-like situation in view of the ongoing rainfall across Jammu and Kashmir.
MLA Pampore Justice (Retd.) Hasnain Masoodi; Deputy Commissioner Pulwama, Dr. Basharat Qayoom; other senior officers of Health Department, Food & Civil Supplies, R&B, Irrigation & Flood Control and KPDCL were present during the meeting.
During the meeting, the Minister conducted a comprehensive review of the district’s disaster preparedness, including the functioning of emergency response mechanisms, deployment of rescue teams, availability of rescue equipment, identification of vulnerable areas, flood mitigation measures, status of embankments, dewatering arrangements, stock of essential commodities, uninterrupted drinking water and power supply, healthcare preparedness, road connectivity, communication systems and functioning of designated relief and rescue centres.
Addressing the officers, Minister Sakeena Itoo said that the months of July, August and September remain crucial from the disaster management perspective. She directed all departments to remain in a state of complete readiness and ensure close coordination for an effective response to any eventuality.
The Minister emphasised the timely identification and relocation of vulnerable families, particularly nomadic communities and those living in low-lying areas, to safer locations whenever required. She directed the concerned departments to strengthen vulnerable embankments, maintain adequate stocks of essential medicines, ensure availability of doctors and paramedical staff, keep ambulances and emergency medical teams on standby and ensure uninterrupted healthcare services.
At the outset, Deputy Commissioner Pulwama, Dr. Basharat Qayoom, apprised the Minister about the overall preparedness of the district. He informed that the District Emergency Operations Centre has been made operational round the clock, while Tehsil and Zonal Level Control Rooms have also been activated for prompt response. He added that weather advisories are being issued regularly, inter-departmental coordination has been strengthened and adequate arrangements have been put in place to ensure uninterrupted essential services, including power and drinking water supply.
Speaking on the occasion, MLA Pampore Justice (Retd.) Hasnain Masoodi stressed the need for strengthening embankments at vulnerable locations, removing encroachments along water bodies, improving drainage infrastructure and ensuring sustained preventive measures to minimise future risks.
Later, at Anantnag, the Minister held detailed assessment of disaster related preparations and availability of essential supplies in the district.
Emphasising on the need for utmost vigilance, Sakeena Itoo directed the district administration to maintain round-the-clock monitoring of flood-prone and vulnerable areas and ensure timely dissemination of weather advisories and alerts among the public. She instructed the officers to keep men and machinery in complete readiness to deal with any emergency arising due to the continuing rainfall.
The Minister directed the officers to shift nomadic families living near river banks to safer locations. She stressed that the safety and well-being of the people should remain the highest priority and asked all departments to work in close coordination for swift response in case of any eventuality.
She directed that emergency control rooms should remain fully functional and adequately staffed to address public grievances and facilitate immediate assistance.
She also directed the Jal Shakti department to rectify drinking water pipelines in cloudburst- hit Awoora area immediately and keep drinking water through tanker supply readily available for the local population.
The Minister also directed the CMO Anantnag to maintain duty roster in all hospitals in letter and spirit, and also keep ambulances available in all flood prone areas to deal with any kind of exigency.
Among others, the meeting was attended by ACR, CPO, SEs of PWD, KPDCL & Jal Shakti/Hydraulics, CMO, CEO, AD FCS&CA, DD F&ES, DySP SDRF and other senior officers of various line departments.
