Civic bodies gear up for monsoon

All the civic departments and others are gearing up to take up rescue and relief measures effectively and have set up disaster response teams accordingly.

In all, 493 disaster response teams have been formed by different departments in the city. At a programme at Necklace Road here on Monday, all the departments, including GHMC, HMWSSB, HMRL, traffic, electricity, Fire services and others, displayed their teams.

Addressing the gathering, Mayor Bonthu Rammohan said GPS systems would be given to all the emergency teams to track their locations and to take up works in coordination with all the line departments. Earlier, each department used to take up relief and rescue works individually without any coordination. This year, all the departments would work as teams as they have been brought together on a single platform, he said.

He also



instructed the officials to sport the respective departments’ uniforms for the convenience of citizens and to avoid confusion. The municipal corporation has already imposed a ban on all types of hoardings in the city from June 15 to August 15 to avoid any loss of life and property as a few hoardings collapsed due to heavy winds and rains in the past, he said.

GHMC Commissioner M Dana Kishore said 493 disaster response teams have been set up by different departments to handle monsoon related problems and to take relief measures immediately.

He stressed on the need for coordinated effort by all the departments in executing the relief and rescue works. In GHMC, 13 major emergency and disaster management teams have been set up, besides identifying low lying areas in all the 30 municipal circles in the city, he said.