Will utilise experiences of other countries: CM

Thiruvananthapuram: The state will utilise the experiences of countries that have successfully overcome large disasters for reconstruction of the flood-ravaged state, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said here on Monday.
Speaking at the first meeting of the advisory committee for the reconstruction of the state, the chief minister said that it was important that land and water resources are used effectively in such a way that there would not be any room for a disaster. He said that the state government would consider framing a new policy in this regard, if required.

The CM said the government planned to implement the plans and programmes for reconstruction in three tiers those to be immediately implemented, those to be implemented in short term and those to be implemented over a long term. He said that the agriculture sector will have to be given a special focus as the nature of the soil itself has changed due to the floods. He said that the issues relating to irrigation also have to be given special focus.

Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala said the state should consider the experiences of countries like Indonesia and Japan, which are vulnerable to such disasters and the houses should be constructed in an eco-friendly manner. Former cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar said that water resources management is compulsory and all reconstruction works should be supervised by an independent agency.

Chief of disaster risk reduction in the United Nations Environment Programme Muralee Thummarukudy suggested that the state could host an international conference for learning from the experiences of countries world over.