J&K floods: Google uploads over 3,200 people’s database

New Delhi: Google has uploaded a database of over 3,200 people who could possibly be stranded in the worst- ever floods in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Internet giant, in an attempt to boost the search capabilities of rescue teams in the state, had yesterday launched a time-tested application which was successfully used in Uttarakhand last year. The database is continuously building up and is now being used to stream information to rescue teams on ground by their control rooms in Delhi and airports in Jammu and Srinagar.

The Google application called ‘Person Finder’ is a customised exclusive web application that allows individuals to post and search for the status of relatives or friends affected by a disaster.The link can be accessed at www.googleindia.blogspot.in or the search can also be done through an SMS by sending a text– “search <name>” to 9773300000. “We want more and more people including NGOs and volunteers present in Jammu and Kashmir to upload more and more information in the e-link so that we can reach to an increased number of stranded people in the state,”said  Public Policy Analyst at Google-India, Fatima Alam.

The application allows individuals to post the details of and search for the status of family members or friends affected by the disaster.

“If you’re worried about someone in the disaster affected area, then click on ‘I’m Looking for Someone’ and type in their name. If you want to let people know you’re safe, or if you have heard from someone in the disaster affected area, then click on ‘I have information about someone’ and put in their names and details,” Google said in its latest post on the e-link.