Gujarat government establishes 76 multipurpose cyclone shelters in coastal districts, locals lauded initiative

Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], June 18 (ANI): In an initiative aimed at saving lives during cyclones and mitigating problems of people, the Gujarat government has built 76 shelters">multipurpose cyclone shelters (MPCS) in coastal districts.
The residents of the coastal districts have welcomed the initiative, saying it will help them in different ways.
They said that apart from relief during natural disasters, the robust structures can also serve them in other ways also such as for meetings and functions.
Gujarat has India's longest coastline of about 1600 kilometres and the state has faced recurrent cyclones including 'Vayu' (2019), Nisarga (2020), Tauktae (2021) and Biparjoy (2023)
The Bhupendra Patel government has taken the initiative to construct 76 shelters">multipurpose cyclone shelters to relocate people from affected areas to safe locations before cyclones strike.
Kirti Gaur, a sarpanch of Maska village in the Kachchh district, said the shelters">multipurpose cyclone shelters were a "thoughtful initiative".
"Shelters have been built due to the wisdom of the Gujarat government. There are problems in moving people. With these cyclone shelters, there will be no casualties and people will be able to resume their work comfortably."
Abdul Shakur, a resident of Gandhidham in Kachchh district, said the shelter house built by the government is very good.
"During cyclone, we face severe problems. The government helps but problems do crop up. The shelter house built by the government near to the village is very good."
Locals said the shelters are equipped with community kitchens and can accommodate medical teams. They said that during cyclones, they go to houses of their relatives or to temporary shelters and it takes time to return to village and resume normal lives. They said multipurpose shelters were very useful.
These 76 shelters">multipurpose cyclone shelters (MPCS) have been built in 10 districts at a cost of Rs 271 crore.
The state government has been proactive with its disaster management plan. It has also identified 2,213 safe shelter locations in different tehsils.
In another sign of its sensitivity, the state government had prepared a standard operating procedure (SOP) to rescue wildlife lions during Cyclone Biparjoy. Specialised rescue teams had been deployed.
The state government is training villagers as part of its disaster management plan. In 2016, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) initiated the 'Aapda Mitra' scheme to provide requisite training to volunteers. (ANI)