New Delhi: Experts gathered at the ITU-UN Disaster Risk Reduction workshop on Friday, calling for increased cross-sector collaboration to leverage emerging technologies and standardized approaches in disaster risk reduction. The workshop, themed “Reimagining Disaster Risk Reduction: The Role of Standardization and Innovative Technologies,” was a side event at the ITU-WTSA 2024 conference in New Delhi, a PIB press release stated.
The event, co-organized by UNCCD, CDRI, UNDRR, and ITU, highlighted the potential of technologies like AI, big data, digital twins, drones, remote sensing, and blockchain in disaster mitigation. Participants discussed improving prediction accuracy, optimizing response times, and streamlining recovery efforts with these technologies.
Dr. Neeraj Mittal, Secretary of the Department of Telecommunications, emphasized the importance of disaster mitigation, stating, “Telecom is a horizontal technology on which all other technologies are highly dependent…this is the right moment to sit down and discuss all these issues.” He highlighted successful early warning systems developed in India, such as the cell broadcast technology developed by C-DoT.
Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General of ITU, stressed the increasing frequency and intensity of disasters, advocating for the use of both traditional and emerging technologies. He emphasized ITU’s role in monitoring from space and providing emergency telecommunications clusters to maintain communication during disasters. The workshop concluded by emphasizing the need for deeper collaboration between industries, governments, and international organizations to ensure global preparedness and resilience to natural disasters.