The Hindu 28.12.2010
VMC imparts training in school safety
| ‘The focus of the URRP is to build the capacity of a team of volunteers' |
The programme organised as part of the Urban Risk Reduction Project
Disaster response force conducts mock drill
VIJAYAWADA: For the set of teachers and students who attended the day-long training in capacity building and preparedness for natural disasters management at the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation on Monday, it was a new learning experience.
“You cannot prevent natural disasters. But you can prepare the schools for an emergency. It is important to develop a school safety plan well before there is any impending danger. Disaster preparedness plan is an essential component of school safety,” B. Nagendra Kumar, State Project Officer, Urban Risk Reduction Project (URRP) in the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), told a press conference that followed the training session.
Pilot project
The training was part of the URRP that is being implemented as a pilot project in four cities, including Vijayawada. The other three cities are Khammam, Kurnool and Srikakulam. “The focus of the URRP is building the capacity of a team of volunteers, developing a training module and conducting training sessions for service delivery in emergencies,” he said.
“Disasters can be natural or man-made. Preparedness to confront the situation in the best possible manner is essential to minimize loss of lives or property during incidents of fire accident, earthquake or a cyclone. The focus of our today's programme was on how to act when a disaster strikes at school-level,” he said about the project, a joint venture of the Government of India and the UNDP, which is being implemented through the VMC.
As part of the move to educate teachers and students on emergency procedures, the trainers said when disasters occur, one must make the best of the locally available material to carry out rescue operations and thus reduce the impact of the disaster.
A mock drill conducted by the personnel of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) comprised the training session. “Drills make you aware of emergency exits and how to react during a fire accident,” Mr. Nagendra Kumar said. A total of 103 teachers and student representatives from 70-odd schools participated in the training session.
VMC Additional Project Director A. Ramalingeswara Raju, Project Support Associate P. Usha, State Training Officer M. Madhubabu and others were present.
Over 100 teachers and student representatives take part in the session.
