FM University to take lead in sensitizing tribals, farmers on lightning – Times of India

Representative Image. (Getty Images)

BHUBANESWAR: Fakir Mohan University Balasore should take lead in the knowledge oriented lightning resilience programme for Odisha. Ashwini Kumar Patra, tourism minister, said this while attending a two-day national workshop on lightning resilience at the university campus on Thursday.
Patra said such a programme is being organised at a university for the first time. “The university should set up a centre of excellence to conduct research and development and undertake societal responsibility to ensure a lightning safe society,” he added.
He appealed to other universities in Odisha to take such initiatives. The event was aimed to mobilise academic knowledge to panchayats and villages to build lightning resilience among tribal, farmers, fishermen, labourers, cattle grazers and people working in the open. “We should work towards zero death due to lightning,” he added.
He urged 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 tribal, farmers and rural communities.
The workshop on lightning resilience was organised at FM University, India Meteorological Department (IMD), Climate Resilient Observing-Systems Promotion Council (CROPC) and Union ministry of earth sciences.
Col Sanjay Srivastava, chairman of CROPC, New Delhi, highlighted that lightning deaths are 100 percent avoidable. He emphasised on the importance of such workshops being helpful in creating awareness among the general public in rural areas who are the most exposed community to lightning.
He urged that public representatives like MPs, MLAs should incorporate lightning safe shelters in villages through their MPLAD/MLALAD funds and make villages lightning safe in a phased manner.
Mrutyunjoy Mohapatra, director general, IMD, addressed the programme online and applauded the initiative taken by Fakir Mohan University.
Santosh Kumar Tripathy, the vice-chancellor of the university, said FM University will start with Bhadrak district and shortly work with Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar. “Around five hundred farmers and villagers from Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts are benefited by participating in the workshop,” he added.