Gangtok, Sept 19 (ANI): The Government of Sikkim hosted a 'National Conference on Disaster Management' here recently to mark the first anniversary of the earthquake that measured 6.8 on the Richter Scale and struck the state in 2011.
This two-day conference under the auspices of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) at the Chintan Bhawan in Gangtok witnessed overwhelming response.
The conference aims to review the efforts made in preparedness to undertake rescue and salvage operations in case of any disaster.
Speaking on the occasion, S B S Bhadauria, the Relief Commissioner of Sikkim, said the main objective behind this conference was to interact with the disaster management officials from other states, and to enhance their knowledge on the techniques to deal with such unexpected eventualities.
"We have called the officials and experts from other states too with an aim to learn from them the techniques of disaster management. The main aim behind organising this conference is that we try to minimise the human loss. I think we cannot control property loss, but we can at least save human lives," Bhadauria said.
Meanwhile, ironically, an earthquake of moderate intensity shook the state when the first day of the conference ended.
The quake, which had a magnitude of 4.1 in the Richter scale, occurred at around 5: 56 pm (IST), when people gathered at Titanic Park to pay tribute to the ones who lost their lives on September 18, 2011.
Scientists of the Seismological Observatory of the Meteorological Department said the epicentre of the quake was in North Sikkim.
No loss to life and property were however reported.
A resident of Gangtok, Subroto Kanta, who was among the participants at the candle light memorial event said the recent jolt came as a surprise and spread shock waves, as it occurred at the same time.
"We all had gathered here to pay homage to the people who died on 18th of September 2011. We were about to begin the programme when we felt a small jolt," Kanta said.
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake hit this remote Himalayan region in September 2011 and killed at least 100 people and left many, including 400 foreigners, stranded in far-flung areas. (ANI)
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