&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "India to build undersea smart cables to detect quakes near Andamans")
Given the high risk of tsunamis and undersea quakes near the Andaman archipelago off India's east coast, authorities are working on building an undersea network of smart cables that will enable early detection and forewarning regarding such potential disasters. This was revealed during a collaborative initiative driven by the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) and the National Disaster Management Authority. The event also witnessed the participation of the Indian Coast Guard(ICG), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and National Institute of Ocean Technology(NIOT), among other stakeholders.
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Elaborating on the disaster risks along India's East Coast, INCOIS Director Dr. Balakrishnan Nair said that it included cyclones, tsunamis, and swell surges. Swell surges are a meteorological event, arising from strong, long-duration winds in remote storms.These waves can arrive suddenly, leading to flash floods with little warning, making them dangerous to coastal populations and infrastructure. He emphasised that the present early warning systems were giving alerts on any likelihood of high waves, tsunamis, and storm surges.
Referring to the Andaman archipelago to the East of the Indian mainland and the Sindh-Makran coast to the northwest, Nair pointed out the risk of non-seismic tsunamis that can be caused by underwater volcanoes and other meteorological factors. He said that undersea cable observatories or smart cables detect tsunamis faster than buoys that float on the surface.
He explained that the Indian Government is working on a 270-kilometre-long smart undersea cable fitted with seismometers, acoustic hydrophones, and other sensors that are meant to serve the Andaman region, which faces a high risk of quakes and tsunamis that can potentially impact the coastal regions along India, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. Dr. Nair added that the data captured by these sensor-laden smart cables would be processed at an INCOIS regional centre that would come up in the Andamans. He expressed confidence that this future system would not fail to detect any seismic activity in the region.
Delivering insights on Disaster Management, Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain(Retd), Member, NDMA, said that half the battle is about awareness and preparedness among the public. He added that the major challenge arises when common people do not know how to respond to a natural calamity. Emphasising the importance of a scientific approach to Disaster management, Hasnain highlighted that the first responders are always the local community, and not the government. He reasoned that this is why the public needs to be aware, empowered, and trained.
As for disaster warnings, officials requested that people in India download NDMA's "Sachet App" or INCOIS' "Samudra App". Further, they also mentioned that the authorities disseminate alert messages to phones in a specific geography that is bracing for an impending or evolving disaster situation.
Prof. Balaji Ramakrishnan, Director of the National Institute of Ocean Technology(NIOT), highlighted that the Indian Government under Mission Mausam(weather) would be spending Rs. 20,000 crores($2.26bn) to make the country ready for weather challenges, especially on the forecasting and forewarning front.
