China-Pakistan to set up disaster monitoring centre

Islamabad: In a move to enhance collaboration on natural disaster monitoring, China-Pakistan Joint Research Centre on Earth Sciences will set up a natural disaster observation and research centre in the Karakoram Mountains together with Karakoram International University.

This was stated by Hong Tianhua, Executive Director and Researcher of the Joint Research Centre at a panel meeting with China-SCO Geosciences Cooperation Research Centre and the All-Pakistan Chinese Enterprises Association (APCEA) held here. “The research centre in Pakistan, to be completed in Passu, GB within three years, will monitor glacial lake outbursts, glacier debris flow, and landslides by analysing the data of glaciers, snow cover, meteorology, hydrology and soil”, Hong Tianhua added, China Economic Net reported on Tuesday. China-Pakistan Joint Research Centre on Earth Sciences, established by Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, serves as a bridge for bilateral cooperation on such areas as natural disasters, ecological environment, resource development and sustainable development of CPEC.

Last year, in the fight against the floods, the CPEC multi-factor database and data management and information service system of the Joint Research Centre played an indispensable role by sharing 26 data sets regarding the deluge. Building on it, the Joint Research Centre will also set up a Digital CPEC platform this year, Hong Tianhua told the audience. “The Digital CPEC platform will support the acquisition, preservation, sharing and utilisation of data on ecological environment and disaster prevention and reduction of CPEC,” he added.