Bhubaneswar: Adding another feather to its cap, Odisha has become the first state in the Indian Ocean region to get UNESCO-IOC recognisation for making the villages tsunami ready.
Two villages – Noliasahi of Ersama block in Jagatsinghpur and Venkatraipur (Boxipalli) of Rangeilunda block in Ganjam district – have been acknowledged by Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO for greater preparedness to face the tsunami disaster.
A virtual ceremony would be held Friday when awards & certificates will be given to Odisha State Disaster Management Authority and communities, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) PK Jena said.
The two villages have learnt to live with the disaster by strengthening its disaster preparedness from the community to the highest levels of administration, he said.
The state set up the first Disaster Management Authority in the nation in the aftermath of the Super Cyclone in 1999 to reduce the vulnerability of the people and build resilience of the community. Since then, Odisha has been marching ahead in the field of disaster management with the core principles set by the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Jena stated.
The state has set high goals for itself to prepare for the natural and human-induced disasters in the coming times owing to the climate change scenario.
The recognition by the UNESCO is a great achievement for the state of Odisha for the tsunami preparedness. It would make Odisha a role model for tsunami preparedness. With this award, the state is motivated to make the balance 326 villages and ULBs tsunami ready in a year’s time, he added.
