A V Ranganath assures HYDRAA priority for volunteers
HYDERABAD: HYDRAA Commissioner A V Ranganath on Tuesday said the agency will utilise the services of ‘Yuva Apada Mitra’ volunteers during natural calamities and give them priority during recruitment to the HYDRAA Disaster Response Force.
He spoke after distributing certificates to volunteers who completed training under the ‘Yuva Apada Mitra’ programme at the HYDRAA training centre in Fathullaguda.
A total of 105 youth volunteers from Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts underwent week-long training from February 18 to 24.
They were trained in disaster response, rescue techniques and coordination with official emergency teams.
Ranganath said the volunteers, being local residents, would act as first responders during emergencies and work alongside support teams from various departments.
He urged each trained volunteer to prepare at least 10 more youth locally and reassure residents that help was available.
He also asked them to remain ready and accessible to work with HYDRAA during heavy rains and floods.
HYDRAA works towards flood-free, eco-friendly city
Ranganath said the government’s objective was to build an environmentally sustainable city and that HYDRAA was working in that direction.
He said the agency was taking steps to protect lakes and drainage channels as part of efforts to build a flood-free city.
The training received on disaster response and life-saving measures should serve the volunteers throughout their lives, he added.
During the interaction, the commissioner reviewed HYDRAA’s activities and sought feedback on the training programme.
Students said they were impressed with HYDRAA’s efforts in protecting parks, lakes, drainage channels, government lands and public utility spaces. They said they had inspected lakes developed by HYDRAA and found them well maintained.
They said the training had removed their fear of disasters and given them confidence to save lives. The week-long programme had increased their sense of responsibility towards society, they added.
The volunteers said they were ready to support HYDRAA as Yuva Apada Mitras.
HYDRAA Additional Commissioner R Sudarshan, Additional Director Varla Papaiah, RFO Jayaprakash, DFO Yagnanarayana, Inspector Shamsuddin and ADFO Mohan Rao attended the valedictory programme.
