Dileep V Kumar By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state’s disaster preparedness and relief initiatives are all set to get a shot in the arm as it will become a part of the National Disaster Management Information System. The initiative will be rolled out by National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in consultation with UN organisations and expert groups. According to State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA), the new initiative will help plug gaps in disaster-related relief and interventions. The state at present updates data related to natural disasters in the National Database for Emergency Management (NDEM) of Indian Space Research Organisation. “NDMA is set to create a comprehensive disaster damage and loss database at the national level. The template for the same is under finalisation and a copy of the final format will soon be shared with the state,” said an SDMA officer. He further added, based on a letter from Sanjeev Kumar Jindal, joint secretary (Disaster Management), Ministry of Home Affairs in April, SDMA has also appointed a nodal officer who will coordinate with NDMA/MHA for daily collection of data. According to a member with the State Emergency Operation Centre, the new system will act as a statistics portal in which disaster specific, and disaster and sectoral-wise details will be uploaded. This data can then be used by the Centre for understanding the gravity of the disaster. At the same time, SDMA member secretary Sekhar L Kuriakose told Express that as of now, the new system was not statutorily applicable for the state as it had been using NDEM since 2015. “The new initiative is a collaboration between the MHA and the United Nations Platform for Space-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response (UN-SPIDER),” said Sekhar. Earlier, the NDMA had stated that the proposed National Disaster Management Information System was for establishing a uniform and credible national-level disaster database. It also added that such a database would help track the nation’s progress towards achieving the targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR), of which it is a signatory. The framework lays down methods for reducing disaster-related deaths and economic losses.

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