BADC Demands Flood & Disaster Mock Drills before Monsoon

GNS ONLINE NEWS PORTAL

JAMMU, JUNE 15 :-The Jammu and Kashmir Border Area Development Conference (JK-BADC), a registered organisation working for the welfare of border residents and tribal communities, has urged the Jammu and Kashmir Government and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) to conduct flood and disaster mock drills for the concered officers of the related departments and also for citizens in all border districts before the onset of the monsoon season 2026.

Dr Shazad Ahmed Malik, Chairman, BADC and former Vice Chancellor, said that the monsoon floods of 2025 caused heavy damage across Jammu and Kashmir, including border villages, and exposed serious gaps in preparedness and emergency response. People living in vulnerable areas suffered major losses and faced difficulties due to delayed response and lack of proper arrangements at the local level.

He said such a situation must not be repeated this year. With the monsoon season approaching, JK-BADC stressed that preparedness should begin immediately, particularly in vulnerable and high-risk areas which are often among the worst affected during floods and natural disasters.

Dr Shazad urged the government and SDRF to organise mock drills in vulnerable areas, train local youth and volunteers in rescue work and emergency response, keep tools and relief material ready in flood-prone areas, improve communication systems in remote villages, and conduct awareness programmes to avoid human life loss during floods or any natural disaster.

The BADC organization also appealed to the Chief Secretary J & K , Divisional Commissioners Kashmir and Jammu and all Deputy Commissioners of the districts to issue necessary directions to the concerned departments for clearing bottlenecks and completing preparedness measures in time so that last-minute haste does not put lives of people at risk.