According to experts from the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information System (INCOIS), India is much safer against tsunami threats than it was in 2004, due to the establishment of a state-of-the-art tsunami early warning system at INCOIS.
Indian Ocean Tsunami Early Warning System:
The Indian Tsunami Early Warning System (ITEWS) was established in 2007 and is based at & operated by INCOIS, Hyderabad.
It is an integrated effort of different organizations including the Department of Space (DOS), the Department of Science and Technology (DST), the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the Survey of India (SOI), and the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT).
ITEWS comprises:
- real-time network of seismic stations,
- tide gauges, and a
- 24/7 operational tsunami warning center
to detect tsunamigenic earthquakes, monitor tsunamis, and provide timely advisories to vulnerable communities.
Indian scientists can detect large undersea earthquakes in the Indian Ocean in real-time and provide a tsunami warning in 10-20 minutes after the earthquake occurs.
In 2004, India didn’t have any tsunami warning capability nor any public knowledge of tsunamis in the Indian Ocean.
India is among the first few centres to introduce quantitative tsunami forecasts.
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO (also known as UNESCO-IOC) accredited Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC) as Tsunami Service Provider (TSP) for 28 Indian Ocean Rim (IOR) countries, along with Indonesia and Australia in 2011, for issuing regional warnings.
Related MCQs – Indian Ocean Tsunami Change Early Warning Systems
Which of the following was NOT part of India’s tsunami response in 2004?
(a) A real-time network of seismic stations
(b) Tide gauges for sea-level monitoring
(c) A tsunami warning system at INCOIS
(d) Public awareness of tsunamis in the Indian Ocean
Which of the following organizations collaborates to operate the Indian Tsunami Early Warning System (ITEWS)?
Department of Space (DOS)
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
Indian Meteorological Department (IMD)
Survey of India (SOI)
Select the correct answer:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 2, and 4 only
(c) 1, 3, and 4 only
(d) All of the above
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