Disaster
Management Communication Broadcasts by All India Radio in the wake of the
devastating Earthquake in Nepal and India
A) Details of programming by the External
Services Division (ESD) of All India Radio
· As soon as the
News of devastating Earthquake ravaging large part of Nepal started trickling
in, as an immediate measure, SOS announcements advising people not to panic and
take precautionary safety measures against the possible aftershocks were made.
· Thereafter, the service got in touch with the
MEA officials and by 7 pm, the helpline numbers of MEA, the Indian Mission in
Kathmandu were repeatedly announced.
People were advised to take all precautionary measures, as per the
guidelines provided by the NDMA. Appeal of ADG, NDMA was also recorded over
telephone and broadcast.
· Since, all lines
of communication had broken down; the Nepali Service being broadcast on
Short-wave remained the only available communication link to reach out to the
distressed people in Kathmandu valley and the hinterland Nepal.
· Hence, the normal
programming of the whole evening transmission was changed and programmes
relating to the Earthquake were broadcast continuously.
· A special report
about the flying in of medical help, relief material and NDMA experts by India
for the help of the Nepalese people in their hour of crisis was broadcast to
boost the morale of the people and to inform that India is by their side at
this critical situation.
· The next morning
transmission also included interview of Shri Krishna Prasad Dhakal, Deputy
Chief of Mission of Nepal in India, who elaborately spoke regarding the
situation, the need of relief materials, medical aid etc.
· The SOS
announcements were continued to be made as many aftershocks were felt. Appeal
announcements requested by the 2nd Secretary in the Nepalese Embassy
regarding rehabilitation and requirements of different relief materials like Dry
ration, Medicine, Tents and Baby Food, Drinking Water etc were also made in
the morning and mid-day transmission of Sunday.
·
Interview and
bytes of some of the persons evacuated from Nepal were also broadcast. In the
evening transmission on Sunday, the appeal made by the Prime Minister’s in his
special radio programme Mann Ki Baat broadcast at 11.00 am was included.
· On Monday,
telephonic interviews of Indian- Nepalese volunteers who are going to Nepal for
helping in the rescue and relief work were broadcast in the transmissions. SOS
announcements, helpline numbers, health precautions to be taken etc were
broadcast in the morning and mid-day transmission.
·
A press
conference called in the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi, where details of relief
and rescue works were given and India’s yeoman help at the hour of crisis was
lauded, has been covered and excerpts are being broadcast in the evening
transmission.
· The efforts of
the Nepali Service to disseminate vital and crucial information to the
distressed people of Nepal and also to the rescue workers would continue over
the next few days till life comes back to normalcy.
· The tone, tenor
and the content of the service will be calibrated to suit the requirements as
the events unfold.
· The In-charge of
the Nepali Service, and the Head of External Services Division have been
personally monitoring the situation and are in constant touch with the MEA,
Embassy of Nepal in Delhi, Indian Mission in Kathmandu, NDMA and other agencies
involved to cater to their communication needs and providing important and
critical information to the suffering people.
B) Programming by AIR stations serving Indo-Nepal
Border and areas affected by the
Earthquake
In the wake of the earthquake that struck and
caused heavy damages in some of the
States bordering Nepal recently, All India Radio stations situated in the
affected areas have been playing a vital role in disaster management
communication to bring succour to the
affected people. AIR Stations have acted as the fastest mode of
communication to reach the affected people and provide them the vital
information for their safety and well-being.
As soon as the news about the killer quake
broke out on 25th April, 2015, AIR Stations serving the areas which suffered due to
earthquake were advised to mount suitable programmes keeping in view the
situation in their respective service areas. These Stations have also been
advised that depending upon the extent of damage, they may contact various
State and local government authorities which deal with disaster management
activities such as rescue, relief and rehabilitation for their broadcasts in their
respective regions.
As per standing instructions for AIR stations regarding
disaster management in such situations, the concerned AIR stations in these
areas have started giving wide publicity to helpline numbers of various relief
agencies. Special educative and informative programmes have been mounted
disseminating information about the various relief and rescue measures taken by
the administration in order to reach out to the affected people. In this
direction, AIR Patna, AIR Darbhanga, AIR Gorakhpur, AIR Lucknow, AIR Gangtok,
AIR Siliguri, AIR Guwahati, AIR Delhi, etc put out suitable programmes to
generate awareness among the masses, particularly informing them how to deal in
such situations and also not to fall prey to rumour mongers. Accordingly, the
quake related broadcasts have been suitably devised and these programmes are
being continued with updated information as the situation continues to unfold
and concerned agencies step up their efforts to keep people abreast of the latest
situation. Emphasis is also being given to educate the people on the possible
post- quake health issues in specially mounted health programmes.
C) Details of some of the programmes
broadcast/planned for broadcast by various
channels of AIR, Delhi
FM Rainbow
Date of broadcast: 25 April, 2015
Time of broadcast: 1700 to 1800 hours
Dial out: Professor K J Anand Kumar,
NIDM, New Delhi and,
Shri S S Guleria,
DIG, NDRF, New Delhi
FM GOLD
Date of broadcast: 25 April, 2015
Time of broadcast: 1745 to 1800 hours
Dial out: Professor K J Anand Kumar,
NIDM, New Delhi
FM Rainbow
Date of broadcast: 27 April, 2015
Time of broadcast: 0800 to 0900 hours
Dial out: Shri M. Sashidhar Reddy,
Former Vice Chairman, NDMA, New Delhi
RAJDHANI CHANNEL
Interview: “Understanding Earthquakes”
Date of broadcast: 27 April, 2015
Time of broadcast: 2130 to 2200 hours
Expert: Shri O. P. Mishra,
Seismologist, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, New Delhi
FM GOLD
Date of broadcast: 28 April, 2015
Time of broadcast: 1300 to 1400 hours
Dial out: Shri Sailesh Naik,
Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, New Delhi
FM Rainbow
Date of broadcast: 28 April, 2015
Time of broadcast: 0800 to 0900 hours
Dial out: Major General R. K. Kaushal,
Senior Consultant, NDMA, New Delhi
Indraprastha Channel & FM Rainbow
Saturday Phone-in-Program on “Bhukamp
Aur Aapda Prabhandan”.
Date of broadcast: 02 May, 2015
Time of broadcast: 0910 to 1000 hours
Experts: Professor Santosh Kumar,
Director, SAARC Disaster Management Centre, New Delhi
Professor V K Sharma,
Consultant, Disaster Mnagement, IIPA, New Delhi
Shri O. P. Singh,
Director General, NDRF, New Delhi
PS: Programme presenters/comperes of
FM Rainbow, FM Gold, Indraprastha and Rajdhani channel of All India Radio,
Delhi are educating the masses/listeners regarding precautions they should take
before and after earthquakes since the evening of 25/04/2015. Other important
information including details of helpline numbers (latest 011-1078 – the
national earthquake related NDMA helpline) is also being provided regularly.
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