NTA to improve GPRS for smooth communication during disaster

KATHMANDU, Feb 5:

Minutes after the strong tremor in September 18, 2011, the GPRS mobile service temporarily crashed, failing to process a huge number of calls people frantically made in their attempt to contact their family members and relatives.

To avoid similar situation in future, the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) is preparing a National Emergency Telecom Plan (NETP). Once the plan gets finalized, the draft would be sent to the Ministry of Information and Communications for endorsement.

Satellite phones equipped with GPRS for sending and receiving is the most effective medium when most of the terrestrial telecom infrastructures are prone to damage during disasters, said the NTA Expert Engineer Shree Bhadra Wagle. However, the authority is yet to estimate the cost and expertise required to develop the technology.

It is an established fact that being informed about the disaster just two seconds early can reduce human casualties by 25 percent, whereas the information received five seconds before the disaster can prevent 80 percent of deaths, said Ramesh Guragain, deputy executive director of the National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET).

The NSET study held in 2009 shows that nine out of 13 mobile towers are too fragile to withstand a strong tremor. The NTA is shortly endorsing the regulation on managing the vulnerable towers and replacing the fragile ones, said Wagle.

Pradip Koirala, chief of Disaster Management Section at the Ministry of Home Affairs, said there is a lack of proper policy to work with private partners who have shown interest in bolstering disaster response mechanism.
He also pointed out the need to increase power backup at 83 identified open spaces by the ministry.

Source: Republica