Neiphiu Rio addressing a meeting on monsoon preparedness in
Kohima on Tuesday.
DIMAPUR — Chief
Minister Neiphiu Rio on Tuesday chaired a meeting on monsoon preparedness at
the CM conference hall, Nagaland Civil Secretariat, Kohima.
In his address, he chief minister, who is also the chairman
of Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority (NSDMA), asked the department
concerned to make an assessment of essential commodities across the districts
before the monsoon season sets in.
Rio emphasised that any complaints regarding shortages of
essential commodities from villages or towns should be reported for prompt
address, a DIPR report stated.
He also instructed the Food & Civil Supplies department
to monitor fair price shops to ensure protection of consumer rights.
Raising concerns on traffic advisories along various routes
in the state, he directed the PWD department to specify and monitor truck
weight limits on national highways during the monsoon season.
He also instructed the administration and police department
to deploy teams of officers and ‘dobashis’ for routine road checks to ensure
smooth traffic flow in towns and national highways during the monsoon season.
Additionally, the chief minister shared his views and
concerns on restoring the State Quality Control Board in Nagaland at the
earliest.
Further, he directed the chief secretary to hold a virtual
conference with all deputy commissioners to review the status of essential
commodities and preparedness across districts.
Roads and Bridges Minister G Kaito Aye, who also shared his
views on road sector, stressed the need for resilient roads and urged the
NHIDCL to take responsibility and deliver quality infrastructure for Nagaland.
The minister also requested the Disaster Management
department to allocate a specific fund for emergency response, which can be
utilised by any department to ensure public welfare during the monsoon season.
Kaito urged the NHIDCL and relevant departments to identify
areas needing immediate repair and implement effective restoration strategies.
He also requested the Mechanical department to provide an update on available
machinery for the monsoon season.
Minister for PHED, Jacob Zhimomi, also shared that the soil
condition of Nagaland is very watery, therefore strict protocols have to be
followed and mandatory soil testing done during road construction.
The minister told the NHIDCL to instruct the contractors to
follow strict protocols during road construction for durability and
sustainability. Zhimomi also advised the contractors that once the surface work
is completed they should not leave any residues on the road.
Joint Chief Executive Officer, NSDMA, Johnny Ruangmei, in
his power point presentation on ‘Monsoon 2025 forecasting for Nagaland,’ said
that distribution of rainfall pattern across the state will be “un-uniform and
erratic,” which will impact crop plantation season.
Ruangmei said that a proactive disaster risk reduction
approach combined with preparedness, data-driven planning and community
engagement can significantly reduce potential risks.
Presentations were made by various departments, including
PWD (R&B) and NHIDCL on monsoon preparedness and road infrastructure
resilience, HG, CD& SDRF/NDRF on emergency response preparedness, Health
& Family Welfare on health personnel and infrastructure readiness, and Food
& Civil Supplies on essential commodities and preparedness.
Another monsoon preparedness meeting on May 21
Meanwhile, another monsoon preparedness meeting under the
chairmanship of the chief secretary and chairman SEC, NSDMA, will be held on
May 21 at 2 pm in the Chief Secretary's Conference Hall, Kohima.
The following departments have been requested to attend the
meeting: Commissioner, Home Commissioner, Director General of Police,
Commissioner & Secretary (Works & Housing), Commissioner &
Secretary, (H&FW), Commissioner & Secretary (F&CS), Chief Engineer,
NH (NPWD), Chief Engineer, R&B (NPWD).
All the deputy commissioners and chairmen of DDMAs have been
requested to join the meeting along with district head of departments through
video conferencing.
