Monday

01


April , 2019
UNICEF organises media workshop on disaster readiness
14:00 pm

Kuntala Sarkar


The state of West Bengal is among the most critically disaster-prone states in India. Various districts of the state like the South and North 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Howrah, Hoogly and East Midnapore are highly exposed to flood and cyclone. The northern districts of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri come under regions that are under high risk of earthquakes. Children constitute one third of the total population of the state who are vulnerable to flood, cyclone, landslide and earthquake.

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), West Bengal has recognised the disaster-prone nature of the state and recently conducted a media workshop to highlight these issues. According to Moumita Dastidar, Communication Specialist, UNICEF, West Bengal, “Generally media houses report elaborately on disaster management and response. However, the media focus is relatively less on disaster preparedness and prevention. Through this programme, we are trying to re-orient media houses to act in prevention of disasters.”

The workshop was well-attended by various media houses and highlighted the positive practices that can be undertaken by media in assessing potential risks and environmental vulnerabilities. Additionally, the workshop also highlighted the role that should be undertaken by media for disaster preparedness and response.

 

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