Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said the adoption of technologies such as Cell Broadcast and the Common Alerting Protocol would significantly strengthen disaster preparedness, improve governance and ensure timely and effective outreach to citizens.
Shah conveyed his best wishes on the launch of the cell broadcast alert system, which is designed to warn citizens about emergencies and natural disasters in their areas, according to a government statement.
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Cell Broadcast System Launched for Emergency Alerts
Union Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia launched the system on Saturday. Shah was quoted in the statement as saying that the adoption of advanced communication technologies such as Cell Broadcast and CAP would help ensure timely outreach to every citizen.
The system has been developed to rapidly disseminate alerts to large populations during time-critical situations. These include tsunamis, earthquakes, lightning strikes and man-made emergencies such as gas leaks and chemical hazards, the statement said.
Indigenous Platform Developed with NDMA and C-DOT
According to the statement, the Cell Broadcast Alert System has been developed indigenously by C-DOT in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Authority, under the guidance of Home Minister Amit Shah.
The system is based on the Common Alerting Protocol, as recommended by the International Telecommunication Union, a United Nations agency. It is intended to deliver disaster and emergency-related alerts through text messages to mobile-phone users in geo-targeted areas.
Operational Across 36 States and Union Territories
The system has been successfully deployed by the NDMA across 36 states and Union territories and connected to all five telecom operators providing mobile services in the country.
The alert system was sent across the network of all telecom operators in the country, except in poll-bound states. The system is currently operational across all 36 states and Union territories of India.
