The deputy interior minister has said that “drought is not a crisis but a phenomenon in need of proper management.”
Esmaeel Najjar, addressing the coordination meeting of the Crisis Management Council in South Khorasan Province, said there are successful instances of drought management in some provinces that can set a good example for tackling such problems, IRNA reported.
He emphasized that the most critical issue in disaster management is earthquakes. “How to immunize the country against this natural disaster is an issue on the agenda of the council,” he said.
Najjar noted that it is quite impossible to predict earthquakes and said in order to prevent huge damage in the event of an earthquake, the solidity and strength of the constructions must be a priority.
“Unfortunately this is largely neglected in Iran”, he stressed.
About 70% of buildings in Tehran are less than 35 years old. Normally the longevity of a construction is 100 to 150 years but in Tehran, due to poor supervision and control over construction, buildings are destroyed or reconstructed every 20 years.
Wrong Reports
Another important factor in disaster management such as in earthquakes, is to precisely evaluate the damage and loss. “In the past there have been cases of wrong reports, by provincial officials, on the loss or damages caused by an earthquake, wherein a small earthquake has been reported as a large-scale crisis,” Najjar noted.
He said the budget allocation to the council has “major deficiencies” and added that although the intention is there “to shrink the bloated bureaucracy since many years,” in practice this has not happened yet and a huge income of the national budget goes to its upkeep.
