New Delhi, May 2: India has achieved a significant milestone with the launch of a nationwide mobile-based disaster communication system. On Saturday, citizens received an alert on their mobile phones indicating an “extremely serious warning.”
This initiative is part of the nationwide testing of the indigenous cell broadcast system, aimed at ensuring the rapid dissemination of disaster warnings. During this testing phase, the government sent out a trial alert.
The alert was dispatched in both Hindi and English, stating, “India has launched a cell broadcast service using indigenous technology, enabling citizens to receive immediate disaster notifications. Alert citizens lead to a safe nation. No action is required upon receiving this message; it is a test message.”
The mobile-based disaster communication system was developed by the Ministry of Communications in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) of the Government of India. Its goal is to ensure timely dissemination of critical information to citizens.
According to the Ministry of Communications, this system is based on the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) recommended by the International Telecommunication Union. It is currently operational across all 36 states and union territories in India, providing SMS alerts to mobile users in geographically targeted areas during disasters and emergencies.
This system has been widely utilized by disaster management authorities, resulting in the transmission of over 134 billion SMS alerts in more than 19 Indian languages during natural disasters, weather warnings, and cyclonic events. To enhance alert dissemination during time-sensitive situations such as tsunamis, earthquakes, lightning strikes, and chemical hazards, the introduction of SMS alongside cell broadcast (CB) technology has been implemented.
Alerts through the cell broadcast system are transmitted simultaneously to all mobile devices within a designated geographic area, ensuring near real-time delivery of notifications. The responsibility for the development and implementation of this indigenous cell broadcast-based public emergency alert system has been entrusted to the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), the premier research and development center of the Department of Telecommunications.
Arpit Soni has had a passion for journalism since the beginning. Now he has turned this hobby into his profession. Arpit, who is a resident of Udaipur, enjoys editing and writing news related to journalism. He has worked as a Senior Content Producer in several important roles at Bhaskar, Patrika, Pratahkal, Punjab Kesari, and Times. Arpit completed his schooling in Udaipur and Jaipur. He has been working in the media industry for more than 10 years, and his journey is still continuing. ✍️📚
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