File Picture
In an effort to warn people of natural calamities and reduce loss of lives, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has launched the early warning dissemination system (EWDS) and the mass message system to inform people in advance of impending calamities on the occasion of Odisha Disaster Preparedness Day.
The system is the first of its kind automatic public address system in the country to alert the general people about the possible cyclone, tsunami and others, official sources said.
Odisha Disaster Preparedness Day is observed every year on October 29, the day on which super cyclone hit the state and killed over 10,000 people.
The EWDS will help to warn the vast population residing along the coast in the state from the state headquarters through alert siren system from towers installed at 122 locations.
The towers have been placed at a distance of 1.5 km approximately from the coastline.
Patnaik also offered condolences to human lives lost in the recent landslide and heavy rains in the state.
No state in the country faces natural disaster with as much frequency as Odisha. Almost every year we have some form of natural calamity. In spite of that Odisha marches ahead maintaining a growth rate higher than the countrys. This exemplifies the resilience of our people and I am inspired and humbled by it, Pataik said.
