Hyderabad: The World Civil Defense Day, a day dedicated to civil protection and readiness, is observed every year on March 1. On this day, people are reminded to educate on how to keep safe in the event of accidents and calamities.
The Day promotes greater public awareness of safety precautions while honouring and celebrating individuals who serve in civil protection. The International Civil Defence Organisation (ICDO) first celebrated the World Civil Defence Day in 1990.
History - The ICDO, which honors national services battling calamities, established World Civil Defense Day. With the aim of establishing safe havens during times of conflict, the Association of Geneva Zones founded the ICDO, in 1931. It is now an organisation which works to prevent disasters from endangering people's lives and the environment. It is a non-profit organisation that strives to safeguard infrastructure, environment, and people's safety and well-being. The 59 member countries of ICDO run training initiatives aimed at enhancing the civil defense industry's human resource management.
Significance - One of the main purposes of this Day is to increase public awareness of the value of emergency preparedness and the critical role civil defense organisations play in protecting communities and lessening the effects of disasters. People have a chance to commemorate and acknowledge the contributions and hard work of civil defence workers who have continuously shown their dedication to saving lives and defending property in times of need on this Day.
In India, civil defence is formed under 'Civil Defence Act, 1968'. It uses the principles of emergency operations: mitigation, prevention, and preparedness for disaster as also for response and relief after disaster. It's main aims and objectives are, to save life, minimise damage to property, to maintain continuity of production, to keep up morale of the public and to keep maintain law and order.
Civil defence objectives - The aim of civil defense is to possess the ability to protect the civilian population, safeguard the most important societal functions, maintain necessary supplies, contribute to the capability of military defence in the event of armed attack or war in our neighbourhood, maintain society’s resilience to external pressure and contribute to enhancing the will to defend the country, contribute to enhancing society’s ability to prevent and manage severe peacetime social emergencies and use available resources to contribute to international peace-promoting and humanitarian operations.
This Day is important is because it serves as a constant reminder of the ongoing need for proactive measures to reduce the risks and enhance resilience in the face of evolving threats. The Day provides an opportunity to inform and empower individuals and communities to take the required steps to prepare for and respond to these threats, thereby reducing their impact and saving lives.
