Noida: On Friday, at around 12:10 pm, several smartphones received a sudden popup with the banner “Emergency alert: Severe”. Everywhere there was chaos, as the mobile was alarming and vibrating and this happened twice. all the smartphones were ringing one after another. This might be alarming for some but we advise you to keep calm and carry on with your daily chores because it was just a test to be future-ready, which is a part of disaster management.
This is the complete flash message:
“This is a SAMPLE TESTING MESSAGE sent through the Cell Broadcasting System by the Department of Telecommunication, Government of India. Please ignore this message as no action is required from your end. This message has been sent to the TEST Pan-India Emergency Alert System being implemented by the National Disaster Management Authority. It aims to enhance public safety and provide timely alerts during emergencies,”
As the message states clearly, “No action is required from your end”.
Not the first time
This is not the first time the flash message has appeared, flashes back in August this year. Then it appeared on September 15, 2023, and now today on October 10, 2023.
Advance messages were circulated some received and other did not received
Some users received an SMS from the Department of Telecommunications, stating, “DoT, Govt of India would conduct Cell Broadcast testing with NDMA. You may receive test alerts on mobile with sound/vibration. These alerts are part of the testing process, do not indicate an actual emergency and do not require any action at your end.”
“To assess the functionality of its emergency alert system”
As explained by the DoT, the cell broadcast alert system is a technology enabling the government to transmit crucial and time-sensitive messages related to disaster management to all mobile devices within a specified geographic area, regardless of whether the recipients are residents or visitors.
Cell Broadcast is a commonly utilised method for distributing emergency alerts, including severe weather warnings like tsunamis, flash floods, earthquakes, and similar events. The DoT and NDMA have been conducting a “Cell Broadcast Alert System testing to enhance emergency communication during disasters” since July, as per a government release.
A press release was issued by the disaster manager the day before this which stated that this would be a pan-India activity, nobody needs to panic it is just an alert. The test will be done on October 10, 2023.
Navin Kumar, Relief commissioner, Uttar Pradesh informed in this press release that it will be just an alert message which will alert us in future about any disaster. This time it will not be the real alert so no one needs to panic or worry.