Kathmandu, March 13:

Several organisations including the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC), the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), the Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS) and the National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET), Nepal, are actively engaged in conducting various earthquake risk prevention programme in the Kathmandu valley.

Kumari Rai, section officer, Social Welfare Department at the Kathmandu Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) said, “The KMC with the coordination of the LWF, NRCS and NSET are conducting various risk prevention programmes on earthquake.”

The KMC has been providing community-based disaster management training to the people, publishing posters, booklets related to earthquake, giving information about the disaster through media and also involving the school children in the awareness programme, he said.

“To be safe from the unseen calamity, the people must follow the National Building Code while constructing the houses,” Rai said, adding, “Besides, we have been providing information on the causes and prevention methods for the earthquake during the National Earthquake Day celebrated on Magh 2.”

Rishikesh Silwal, programme co-ordinator of the Kathmandu Valley Earthquake Preparedness Programme, Disaster Management Department at the NRCS said, “The NRCS have been conducting community based earthquake preparedness initiative programmes in 10 wards in Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Lalitpur districts from April 2005 until June 2007.”

He added that they have been providing earthquake preparedness training.