BHUBANESWAR: With cyclone Yaas threatening to disrupt communication networks, a small group of broadcasters on Tuesday started working towards disseminating government alerts and real-time information on the calamity to remote coastal communities.
Five community radio stations - Radio Smile at Baliapal (Balasore), Radio Bulbul at Bhadrak, Radio Swaraj at Jajpur, Radio Namaskar at Konark and Radio Upkar at Keonjhar commenced live broadcast early on Tuesday morning when Yaas was a few hundred kilometres from the Paradip coast.
The broadcasters are advising people on dos and don’ts when the situation worsens and cyclone makes landfall besides, health advisories on COVID-19.
Biswajit Padhi, chief functionary of Community Radio Association of Odisha (CRAO) said that the community radios will continue to broadcast updates on wind speed and cyclone directions till their towers are hit by the cyclone.
Radio Bulbul in Bhadrak, where the cyclone is likely to make the landfall, has been coordinating with the district administration and IMD officials to pass on real time information to the people, informed Sk Mohd Niyaz, secretary, CRAO.
The radios will cover at least 5,000 habitations in its broadcast so that no casualty is reported. While information on cyclone and government advisories are being collected from district administrations, BDOs, Tehsildars and volunteers, telephone lines have been kept open in the radio stations for people to send in information and seek help during any emergency.
Odisha currently has 19 community radio stations. During Amphan and Fani cyclones that the State witnessed in the last two years, radio was the only source of information for the people on safety measures to take as disruption of telecommunication and power snapped their access to mobile connection and television.