The government is building a trained pool of 100,000 volunteers to respond to major disasters, including earthquakes, with 70,000 volunteers already prepared, State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief M Iqbal Hossain has said.
He made the remarks on Thursday, the fourth day of the third session of the 13th National Parliament, while responding to a supplementary question from ruling party lawmaker Nilufar Chowdhury Moni, representing Reserved Women’s Seat-10.
In her written question, Moni sought details about the government’s preparedness and rescue equipment for dealing with major disasters such as earthquakes.
In response, the state minister said the government was strengthening its preparedness for post-earthquake rescue operations while also working to raise public awareness.
“At the prime minister’s direction, work is underway to build a pool of 100,000 volunteers. So far, 70,000 volunteers have been prepared and are being trained to carry out rescue operations effectively during earthquakes and other disasters,” he said.
On rescue equipment, Hossain said the list of equipment required to respond to an earthquake was extensive. The government has already procured various types of equipment and distributed them among agencies directly involved in disaster response, including the Bangladesh Army, Fire Service and Civil Defence, and Ansar.
He added that initiatives had also been taken to procure additional essential equipment, with the tender process currently underway.
The state minister further said the government had prepared an inventory of disaster response and rescue equipment available in the private sector, in addition to equipment held by government agencies. The government plans to use such equipment and seek assistance from the relevant organisations as needed during disasters.
