Punjab Revenue & Rehabilitation and Information & Public Relations Minister Bikram Singh Majithia today disclosed the State government was working on a comprehensive disaster risk reduction plan.Speaking on the sidelines of the three days Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction being held here at Vigyan Bhawan, Mr Majithia said that the forthcoming plan involved taking concrete preparatory measures to tackle natural disasters.Majithia said that the Asian region annually registered the highest incidences of natural disasters. He said in 2015, 45 per cent of all global disasters occurred in Asia, affecting national, regional, social, environmental and economic development in the region and beyond. He said children and youth were highly vulnerable to the effects of disasters, representing over 50 per cent of the victims.He said to build capacity and empower children and youth to engage in the systematic implementation of disaster risk reduction, school safety and resilience building a comprehensive campaign would be launched in the state at the school and Panchayat level. He said NGO’s, private organisations, social organisations, red cross societies and self-help groups would also be made part of this sensitisation awareness programmes.
Mr. Majithia said that Punjab Chief Minister S. Parkash Singh Badal has already constituted a state disaster response force which has 15 teams each team comprising of 40 Jawans for tackling any disaster like situation. He further said that as Punjab is the food bowl of India and agriculture is the backbone of the economy of the country therefore proper measures should be worked for reduce the risk of crop loss due to natural calamities. Mr. Majithia said Punjab Government had taken a lead in this direction by doubling the compensation of crop loss and included crop loss for compensation due to pests, frost, hail storm and floods, white fly for the first time.Earlier Prime Minister Mr. Narindera Modi along with Union Home Minister Mr. Rajnath Singh, Union Minister of State Home Affairs Mr. Kiren Rijiju and other foreign dignitaries inaugurated the three day Asian Ministerial conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in which delegates from 61 countries are participating.