Guwahati: ASDMA Launches ‘Great Assam School Shakeout Programme 2025’

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), in collaboration with the Department of School Education and UNICEF Assam, launched the Great Assam School Shakeout Programme (GASSP) in Guwahati on Thursday to mark International ShakeOut Day. The initiative aims to institutionalize school safety and disaster preparedness across the state in line with the National School Safety Policy (NDMA, 2016) and the Assam DRR Roadmap 2030.

The launch also marked the beginning of the second batch of the two-day State Level Training of Trainers on Social and Behaviour Change for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), which saw the participation of field officers from 16 districts and project officers (DMs) representing 16 line departments of the Government of Assam.

The programme was inaugurated by Keshab Mahanta, Minister for Revenue & Disaster Management, who emphasized the need to build a culture of safety among students and teachers. Reflecting on the devastating potential of future earthquakes, he noted that while the quakes of 1897 and 1950 caused relatively limited damage due to sparse population and development, a similar event today could be catastrophic. “This special drive will help raise awareness among school students, who can act as catalysts in spreading disaster preparedness knowledge to their families and communities,” he said. In her welcome address, Meenakshi Das Nath, ACS, Secretary, Revenue & Disaster Management Department and Additional CEO of ASDMA, underlined the government’s commitment to creating safe learning environments by embedding DRR measures within the education sector.

Anuja Bhuyan, ACS, Joint Secretary, Department of School Education, highlighted the importance of cultivating a culture of safety in schools through collective and sustained efforts. Dr. Madhulika Jonathan, Chief of Field Office, UNICEF Assam and Northeast, reaffirmed UNICEF’s ongoing partnership with ASDMA to advance child-centred risk reduction and resilience-building initiatives.

As part of the launch, animation videos on disaster preparedness and IEC booklets on earthquake and fire safety were unveiled. Volunteer kits were also distributed to DDMA representatives to facilitate field-level implementation of the programme.

Under GASSP, 1,936 schools across 35 districts—covering more than seven lakh students—will conduct earthquake and fire evacuation mock drills on October 29, 2025, commemorating both the Great Assam Earthquake of 1950 and International ShakeOut Day.

 Also Read: ASDMA Launches SBC-DRR Training with UNICEF Assam