PESHAWAR: The Provincial Disaster Management Authority, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has said it is drawing up a contingency plan to streamline response to natural calamities at provincial and district levels.

“We’ve begun work on the Winter Contingency Plan 2022-23 in consultation with all the stakeholders in order to minimise disaster risks, identify hazards, risks and resource mapping for reducing disaster risks and ensuring timely coordinated response. It will be ready by the middle of next month,” PDMA director-general Sharif Hussain told the ‘pre-winter planning and orientation meeting’ here on Monday.

Additional deputy commissioners(relief) as well as representatives of the district administrations, relevant departments, UNDP Glof-II project and PDMA attended the event, according to an official statement.

The PDMA chief said that the province suffered from torrential rains and heavy floods during the recent monsoon season but the early warning system helped the PDMA, district administrations and other relevant departments evacuate 406,568 people to safe places in different districts ahead of the monsoon disaster, while 69,775 people were rescued.

PDMA says it will carry out vulnerability, risk assessment for districts

He appreciated the district administrations over rescue, relief and rehabilitation activities.

Mr Hussain said that the PDMA had developed the Monsoon Contingency Plan, 2022, with the consultation of district administrations.

He said that tools had been shared with all stakeholders for collecting information regarding district- and sector-wise specific hazards and vulnerability profile, hazard impact, damages, compensation paid, resource mapping, need assessment, and coordination.

“Under the contingency plan, we [PDMA] will make efforts to minimise the losses likely to be caused by natural disasters, including extreme low temperature, fog and smog, snowfall, rains, landslides, flash floods, and seismic activity along the mountainous northern and western regions,” he said.

The PDMA chief also said that the plan would categorise the districts vulnerability and risk assessment into very high, high, medium and low categories.

He said every weather pattern came with its own sets of contingencies.

“The peculiar geography, terrain and natural resources make the province heir to a number of climate contingencies during both summers and winters. Some regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa such as Malakand and Hazara divisions, by virtue of their high altitudes, are exposed to weather extremes in the winter season spreading around four months from December to March. The low temperature, fog and smog, snowfall, rains, landslides, avalanches and the consequent blockade of roads and pathways resulting in inaccessibility of the areas are some of the common features,” he said.

PMDA director (disaster risk management) Mohammad Amin told participants that the authority had initiated the process of introducing proactive preparedness regime under guidelines by the National Disaster Management Authority for streamlining response to natural calamities at provincial and district levels in coordination with all stakeholders.

“The process of contingency planning for major hazards will enable initiation of requisite mitigation measures and to undertake a coordinated response to minimise the loss of life and property in the events of disasters,” he said.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2022