DJ Venkatesh
Diglipur, Nov 13: The Directorate of Disaster Management A & N Administration in collaboration with Andaman & Nicobar Command, National Disaster Management Authority, National Disaster Response and INCOIS a Mock Exercise for the students of GSSS Diglipur on 12th Nov, 2013.
Before the drill a detailed explanation of the whole exercise was given by Mr. Gyan Singh, Assistant Director and his associates. The mock drill was conducted in presence of the Disaster Management Team, personnel from the Police Department, Fire Service, Revenue Department, APWD and the teaching staff of GSSS Diglipur.
But what a mockery it turned out to be, apart from five staffs of the Disaster Management team everyone seemed to be having a good time enjoying their life outside the comforts of their offices.
The students were instructed to evacuate the school and move towards a safer ground at Vivekanada stadium by covering their heads with their school bags. The school has only one exit and it took around 12 minutes for all the 1200 students to evacuate the two storied building constructed in 1000 Sq mt area. After majority students reached the stadium five teams of students were formed and were instructed to evacuated those, which are hurt.
During the whole exercise the no help from the teaching fraternity were taken and all the other officers also were taking the exercise for granted. The police personnel were seen controlling the traffic and the other responsible officers were seen enjoying the whole show.
The mock drill didn’t comply with any standards that had to be followed and just seemed an effort for doing something for the sake of doing. Standard Operating Protocols (SOP) need to followed while these type of mock drills to prepare the students and the employees for any situation. In a place like Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which is prone to earthquakes, these type of drills need to be taken seriously.
Standard Operation Procedure along with the evacuation route needs to be displayed in all the schools and the drill has to be performed very seriously and professionally involving all the officers and teachers.
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