Kerala will formulate a disaster risk reduction plan of international standard by studying and discussing various global models, Revenue Minister K. Rajan has said.
He was speaking after inaugurating an international conference on landslide disaster mitigation organised by the Institute of Land and Disaster Management (ILDM) in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
One of the big challenges being faced by Kerala is the sudden change in nature’s characteristics in the last four years. Mentioning the recent tragic landslides at Kavalappara, Pettimudi, Koottickal and Kokkayar, the Minister said intense rainfall in a short period of time, followed by severe drought, demonstrated the severity of the climate change. Frequent formation of cyclonic circulations, low pressure, and soil piping in which soil starts moving downhill, aggravated the situation.
Landslides in the Western Ghats of Kerala were quite different from the topography of the Himalayas, where most landslides occur. Therefore, detailed studies were required in this area. In the field of disaster management, it should be checked whether the potential of advanced technologies ranging from artificial intelligence to machine learning can be utilised, said Mr. Rajan.
The Minister also directed the ILDM to take lead in implementing the activities in this direction. The policy decisions of the workshop should also be submitted to the State government as recommendations, suggested the Minister.
As many as 20 invited academicians and researchers from across the country and nations will lead the discussions at the two-day workshop to be held on Friday and Saturday. Muralee Thummarukudy, United Nations Disaster Management expert; Vrindhanath M.C., Project Support Officer at UNEP, Nairobi; Hilma Israel from Namibia;, and others will participate.
