Gautam Budh Nagar to prepare database of people in flood-prone villages

GREATER NOIDA: The Gautam Budh Nagar administration will prepare a database of families and vulnerable residents in villages that could be affected by flooding, as part of measures to speed up evacuation and relief during an emergency, officials said

GREATER NOIDA: The Gautam Budh Nagar administration will prepare a database of families and vulnerable residents in villages that could be affected by flooding, as part of measures to speed up evacuation and relief during an emergency, officials said.

Separate lists will be prepared of the sick and infirm people and children below five years of age, said officials. (HT Archive)

Separate lists will be prepared of the sick and infirm people and children below five years of age, they added.

The step follows directions of the district magistrate (DM) Medha Roopam issued on Tuesday to conduct the exercise. It focuses on identifying people who may require priority assistance rather than waiting for a flood situation to develop, said officials.

“Flood preparedness cannot be limited to emergency response after water levels rise. All departments need to complete their preparations in advance and work in coordination, and thus, necessary directions have been issued,” the DM said in a statement.

The directions came even as the Yamuna and Hindon are currently flowing at normal levels following a spell of heavy monsoon rain last week.

At 5pm on Tuesday the downstream discharge at Okhla barrage was 11,029 cusecs, while the Hindon recorded 4,978 cusecs downstream. The discharge at Tajewala was 6,009 cusecs. Also, no rainfall was recorded at the monitoring points at 6am.

The irrigation department said the water levels in both the Yamuna and Hindon were currently normal.

Revenue officials have been asked to prepare directories of residents in potentially affected villages, including their mobile numbers, and separate lists of vulnerable groups. Sub-divisional magistrates and tehsildars have also been directed to establish control rooms with shift-wise staffing and publicise their telephone numbers, said officials.

The irrigation department has been asked to regularly inspect erosion-prone stretches and embankments and complete repairs of rain cuts and rat holes. Stocks of sandbags, geobags and other flood-control material are also to be maintained, they added.

“All departments concerned have been issued necessary directions. The Public Works Department has been asked to repair alternative routes, while development authorities and civic bodies have been directed to ensure drainage and waterlogging issues are addressed in advance,” a district administration official said.

The administration has also directed timely procurement of foodgrains, relief material, dignity kits and cooked food.

“The objective is to ensure that if water levels rise suddenly, the district does not have to begin arrangements from scratch,” the DM added.