๐๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ฒ ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐น๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ธ, ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ๐๐ฒ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ต ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ, ๐ฎ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ณ๐๐น ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ธ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ฒ.
From 23โ25 March 2025, KhatoeโKhamoed Goengo village became a living classroom as the Department of Local Governance and Disaster Management (DLGDM), in partnership with the Dzongkhag Administration, Trashigang, rolled out the Community Based Disaster Risk Management (CBDRM) and Community Action for Disaster Response (CADRE) programmes. The focus was simple yet urgent: equip communities before disaster strikes.
What followed was more than a trainingโit was a collective awakening. Over 160 villagers came together, united by a shared purpose: to protect their homes, families, and future. They explored the realities of earthquakes, fires, floods, and windstormsโnot as distant possibilities, but as risks they could now understand and manage.
Through practical sessions, participants learned fire safety techniques, basic first aid, and casualty response skillsโtools that can mean the difference between loss and survival in times of crisis. Yet the programme went further, placing knowledge directly into the hands of the people. Villagers charted their own hazard maps, identified vulnerable zones, and crafted evacuation plans suited to their unique landscape.
At the heart of it all was ownership. The community didnโt just learnโthey designed their own Community Disaster Management Plans (CDMPs), ensuring that solutions were not imposed, but created, understood, and embraced locally.
The success of the programme stands as a testament to the dedication of local leaders, facilitators, and every individual who took part. It reflects a growing recognition that resilience is strongest when built from the ground up.
In Merak, preparedness is no longer an abstract concept. It is becoming a way of lifeโone that promises a safer, stronger tomorrow for generations to come.
