FM University organises workshop on lightning resilience for Odisha

Balasore: Fakir Mohan University should lead a knowledge oriented lightning resilience programme for Odisha, urged Ashwini Kumar Patra, Minister for Tourism, Language and Literature while inaugurating a two-day national workshop.

It is for the first time that a tribal lightning resilience programme has been undertaken by an university in India. He said that with the expertise available through the national and state-level institutions, the university should set up Centre of Excellence for research and development and undertake societal responsibility to ensure a lightning safe society.

He appealed that other universities in Odisha should also be partners in this initiative. The event was aimed to mobilise academic knowledge to panchayats and villages to build lightning resilience of rural societies especially tribal, farmers, fishermen, labourers, cattle grazers and people working in open or children playing outdoors.

He called for a collaborative effort to ensure realise the vision of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, with “Zero deaths due to lightning”. Patra was hopeful that universities can play a lead role in replicating the knowledge and awareness at local level. Patra urged to universities to take up a practical approach and implement the outcomes of the workshop by creating awareness on the use of science and technology in preventing lightning induced deaths specially among tribals and the rural community .

The two-day workshop on lightning resilience was organised at Fakir Mohan University under the auspices of Post Graduate Department of Geography, CROPC, IMD, MOES. In this context, Professor Manoranjan Mishra, Department of Geography, gave his views on the aims and objectives of the workshop and highlighted the steps taken to reduce lightning deaths in Odisha. Chairman, Post Graduate Council, Professor MC Adhikary delivered the welcome address.

Col. Sanjay Srivastava, Chairman of CROPC, New Delhi, who was the chief guest said lightning deaths are 100 per cent avoidable. He emphasised on the importance of such workshops, which are helpful in creating awareness among the general public in rural areas who are the most exposed community to lightning. He offered research and knowledge management support to the university. He stressed on the need that youth from university must spread awareness in family and villages through gram panchayats. He urged that public representatives like MP, MLAs should incorporate building lighting safe shelters in villages through their MPLAD/MLALAD funds and make villages lightning safe in a phased manner .

Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General India Meteorological Department addressed the programme virtually and applauded the initiative taken by Fakir Mohan University. He congratulated the organisers for a path breaking initiative and assured all support from IMD. Dr Mohapatra emphasised on the role of IMD in forecasting the lightning hazards.

Former DG of IMD, KJ Ramesh expressed his views on various aspects of lightning awareness in India and said that the university can take steps to make this campaign successful on a larger scale especially in northern Odisha. He emphasised that public awareness can yield effective results.

A prominent social activist, Prabhat Kumar Biswal suggested that people can be protected from lightning by following the scientific guidelines at the individual, family and social level.

The Vice-Chancellor Prof. Santosh Kumar Tripathy said the university would start with Bhadrak district and shortly work with Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar. Around five hundred farmers and villagers from Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts will benefit by participating in the workshop.

Dr. Nihar Ranjan Rout coordinated the programme and Dr. Rabi Narayan Behera offered vote of thanks.

In the technical session experts included Col. Sanjay Srivastava, CROPC; Dr. KJ Ramesh Former DG, IMD; Dr. Soma Sen Roy, IMD, New Delhi; Uma Sankar Das, IMD Bhubaneswar; Dr. VS Prakash, Founder Director, KSNDMC and Member, KTCDA Bengaluru; Dr. George Mathew, Chairman, Institute of Social Sciences; Kamlesh Sundar, CIKIT Electrical Technologies, Chennai; Dr. MC Sahoo, AIIMS, Bhubaneshwar; Prof. MR Mishra, FM University; Kanika Bose, NYK; Dr. Rakesh Thakur, OSDMA who has rendered his expertise on several dimensions of lightning hazard.

Members of the organising committee included Dr. Santosh Kumar Agarwalla, Dr. Asim Amitabh Pradhan, Arun Kumar Naik, Dr. Bibekananda Nayak, Dr. Prahllad Khilla, Dr. Sasmita Rout and Dr. Smrutirekha Sahu cooperated for the smooth conduct of the workshop.