Amarnath Yatra: Jammu And Kashmir Conducts Flood Drill To Bolster Safety Measures

The Jammu and Kashmir Disaster Management Department on Friday simulated Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) as it performed flood drills in Pahalgam ahead of the Amarnath Yatra. The Disaster Management Department and Anantnag District Management authority carried out the exercise together, which saw participation from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indian Army, and other emergency support and line departments. 

The Amarnath Yatra is scheduled to begin from July 3, and the mock drill was aimed at bolstering safety measures ahead of the pilgrimage, testing preparedness to respond to any emergency, like a flood or an accident. A whopping number of 4.5 million devotees visited Amarnath last year. 

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The Deputy Secretary of the J-K Disaster Management Department, Snober Jameel, while speaking to ANI, stated, "It is a very significant and important pilgrimage for us. So, before that, too, it's crucial that we ensure people are already prepared. Given the extreme weather events we are witnessing nowadays--like cloudbursts and other types of events--we must be prepared in advance. We have already implemented preparedness and preventive measures. For prompt response, we have already trained our staff."

The Deputy Secretary stated that the initiative aims to tackle potential disasters in advance, highlighting the region's vulnerability due to numerous glacial lakes in the Himalayas. 

She said, "This initiative is by the J-K Disaster Management Department. This mock exercise has been organised in collaboration with the Anantnag District Management Authority. GLOF hazards are a global issue, as we know, and especially in the Himalayan region, where there are many glacial lakes. The approach of the Disaster Management Department and the J-K government has always been that we should be prepared in advance to tackle any disaster."

She said that the drill aims to sensitise and mobilise response forces, including the SDRF, NDRF, and the Army. 

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"This initiative has been taken to conduct a mock exercise specifically for GLOFs, so that all response forces--be it SDRF, NDRF, the Army, Emergency Support Function departments, line departments, our administrative personnel, and other disaster managers--can be sensitised and mobilised. This is being done to implement preparedness measures and demonstrate the practical steps that need to be taken for a response. The idea is that if we face any such disaster in the future, we are fully prepared."