The state-owned telecom operator on Monday signed an agreement with Nepal Red Cross Society (NRS) for installment and operation of systems on pre-preparedness and mitigation of effects during natural disasters.Budhi Prasad Acharya, managing director of NT, and Dev Ratna Dhakwa, general secretary of NRCS, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective institutions.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is assisting NT to install the system.
Ritva Lahti, representative of IFRC in Nepal, said that the system will be very effective for Nepalis who have been recently affected by major earthquake.
Subash Chandra Sah, deputy managing director of Business Management Department of NT, said that IFRC has selected 40 countries for this project. Nepal is the 5th country to have signed agreement with IFRC to install the system, he added. "Once the system is installed, NT users will receive SMS updates before, during and after the natural disasters like floods, landslides, food insecurity, outbreak of various diseases and earthquakes, among others," said Sah, adding that the SMS will be sent in coordination with the Home Ministry and NRCS.
According to Sah, the system will be tested for few days starting Tuesday before implementation.
In the first phase, NT will bring the system into operation for people residing on the banks of Koshi River who are vulnerable to floods. It will then be made available in earthquake affected areas.
"We will gradually expand the system in other areas by upgrading our server capacity and looking after other technical aspects," said Sah.
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