Prime Minister Narendra Modi has advised the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IIT-G) to set up a centre for studying disasters towards better management and risk reduction.
Disasters, natural and man-made, have been a bane for the northeast comprising eight States.
Connecting digitally to speak at the 22nd convocation of the institute on Tuesday, the Prime Minister said the northeast requires quality technological support and intervention to tackle frequent disasters.
“Despite possibilities, the region is forced to grapple with floods, earthquakes, landslips and industrial disasters. The energy and efforts get wasted in combating the problems. A high degree of technological support is required to effectively tackle them,” he said.
Mr. Modi hoped the IIT-G could provide expertise by setting up a centre for disaster management and risk reduction.
“The northeast is the centre of India’s Act East policy. The region is the gateway to Southeast Asia for the country. Culture, commerce, connectivity and capacity are the foundations of the relationship. Now, education is going to become a new medium in our engagement,” he said.
He said the IIT-G could become a major centre in this regard and help open the door for new opportunities to be created in the region.
“Infrastructure is being built in sectors such as railways, highways, water ways and air ways to give impetus to development in the northeast. The IIT-G has a major role in these initiatives for creating new opportunities in the entire region,” the Prime Minister said.
He also hoped that research would become a habit for the graduates and a part of their thought process.
“Knowledge has no boundaries. The National Education Policy focuses on opening up the education sector for global institutes to set up their campus in India for our students to benefit from. Similarly, Indian institutes will set up their centres abroad. This will help promote research collaboration and exchange programmes,” Mr. Modi said.
