Yogi govt opens UP's first state emergency ops centre 'Rahat Gurukulam'

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 29 : In a significant move towards disaster preparedness in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP government inaugurated the state's first state emergency operation centre and training facility, 'Rahat Gurukulam,' on Thursday.
This state-of-the-art centre aims at providing disaster management training not only to the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) but also to the general public across the state, the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) informed through a press release.
This initiative aims at cultivating a robust cadre of trained individuals across the state, poised to effectively respond to disasters and minimize loss of life and resources, according to the release.
The government places great emphasis on reducing casualties caused by disasters in the state, the official communication stated, adding that as part of this commitment, the government directed the Relief department to establish its own training centre.
'Rahat Gurukulam' was inaugurated by Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra on Thursday as the training hub for the State Emergency Operation Centre at the Divisional Revenue Training Centre on Deva Road, Chinhat.
"The State Emergency Operation Center of the Relief Commissioner's office is responsible for managing disaster-related damages, relief distribution, and their monitoring across the state. However, until now, the department lacked a permanent training centre to provide disaster management training to various departments, institutions, and stakeholders involved in disaster mitigation," the CMO informed through the release.
In line with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's directive, Rahat Gurukulam has been established as a state-of-the-art training centre, the release stated further, adding that this facility comprises one conference room, two training rooms, an auditorium, and seating arrangements for eight officers. Additionally, a modern computer lab has been set up to facilitate training in various activities related to disaster preparedness, rescue operations, and awareness.
At Rahat Gurukulam, individuals will receive comprehensive training aimed at preparing them for disasters in a timely manner, with the ultimate goal of minimising loss of life and damage, the release added.
Speaking at the programme, the chief secretary said 'Rahat Gurukulam' will play an important role in the direction of disaster management and mitigation in the state.
"Just as 'Rishi Muni' used to provide education in Gurukul, in the same way, through this Rahat Gurukulam, training will be given to protect the common people from disasters using modern technologies according to the same method," he was quoted as saying in the release.
Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue, Sudhir Garg, said Rahat Gurukulam is an ambitious project of the Relief Commissioner. Through this centre, positive and concrete efforts are being made toward better disaster management and mitigation by the Relief Commissioner's office and the Revenue Department, he added.
The programme was attended by Relief Commissioner GS Naveen, Special Secretary Revenue Ram Kewal, and Relief Project Director Aditi Umrao, among others.