The meeting to discuss the draft Disaster Management Plan for the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has failed to evoke response from the public representatives.
Of 150 corporators, less than 10 attended the meeting held at Jubilee Hall here on Saturday. Similarly, of five Lok Sabha and six Rajya Sabha MPs, not a single Parliamentarian gave importance to the subject. Of nearly 25 MLAs in the GHMC limits including two ministers – D Nagender and M Mukesh Goud, only five MLAs including three from the MIM participated in the meeting. Of 25 MLCs, only two MLCs took part in the crucial meeting. Even GHMC Mayor Mohammad Majid Hussain skipped the meeting.
Addressing the meeting National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) vice-chairman Marri Sashidhar Reddy said that there was a proposal to link hospital and other medical services with the NDMA. He emphasised the need to keep a close watch on the old building structures in the city that might collapse due to negligence. He said the urban field management was an important area.
Sashidhar Reddy said that there were several chemical industries in the city which have been causing pollution and they must be checked on regular basis to avoid any mishaps. He also insisted on taking up sustained public awareness campaign with regard to disaster management.
GHMC Commissioner MT Krishna Babu assured that steps would be taken to ensure that Hyderabad emerges as a model city in disaster management. He said the GHMC staff would be trained in disaster management at a large scale.
Making a presentation, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) CV Anand said that there were 125 points in Hyderabad where water gets stagnated. Of them, there are 38 points where water remains stagnated for one to one-and-a-half hour. He also pointed out that there were 460 man-holes on city roads which were uneven and poses a threat to the vehicle users.
While GHMC’s jurisdiction is of 625 km, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority is spread across 7288 km. Similarly, Hyderabad City Police jurisdiction is of 270 km and Cyberabad Police limits are of 3,200 km. The APCPDCL enjoys a separate jurisdiction. Therefore, he suggested that there should be some unanimity in the jurisdictions of implementing agencies.
Jafri also said that the city needs to extra precaution in disaster management in view of existence of Nuclear Fuel Complex and other defence research laboratories.
Congress MLC K Janardhan Reddy and nominated MLA Christine Lazarus also spoke. (INN)