KOCHI: The Navy will conduct a four-day disaster management exercise in coordination with the state government at the Kochi Naval Base from April 5 to 8 to equip the local agencies to respond more effectively to natural disasters like cyclones.This is the first time the Navy is joining hands with the state government to conduct a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise which gains significance in the background of cyclone Ockhi, which swept past Kerala coast on November 30, 2017, leaving a trail of death and destruction.
The exercise ‘Chakravath’ will see participation of the Indian Coast Guard, Kerala Coastal Police, Fisheries Department, state and district-level disaster management personnel along with the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA), NCC cadets and representatives from various civil agencies. “It is an exercise to make Kerala disaster resilient and to build confidence among the local populace regarding our ability to tackle disasters like cyclones.
It is a platform to share the lessons learnt and to ensure better coordination between the civil agencies in the event of a disaster. We will hold a demonstration on dealing with a situation where a harbour is hit by a cyclone. The programme will discuss the standard operating procedure in the face of a disaster, including survey, search operations, rescue operation, the requirement of setting up a field hospital, disaster relief measures, cleaning the harbour and information about whom to contact and coordinate with,” Southern Naval Command Chief Staff Officer (Operations) Commodore Deepak Kumar told Express.
“The response from the state government has been encouraging. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will attend the opening session as the chief guest. Other ministers have also accepted our invite to attend the programme. Chief secretary Paul Antony will address a session and additional chief secretaries will participate.We will provide training to volunteers, NCC cadets and schoolchildren on relief operations so that the state will be better prepared to tackle a disaster,” he said.As many as 1,000 people are expected to attend the four-day programme. The Naval Base will be open for the public to watch the demonstration on April 6,7 and 8.
‘Ockhi rescue was amammoth operation’
The search and rescue operations launched by the Navy to rescue the fishermen hit by cyclone Ockhi was a mammoth operation of unprecedented magnitude, said Commodore Deepak Kumar.According to the international operation procedure, search operations are conducted for 96 hours post disaster. But, the Navy scanned the Arabian Sea extending assistance to the cyclone hit fishermen for 30 days, he said.