Ranit Kr. Singh , Puri - Odisha is set to host the second technical meeting—and the first in-person gathering—of the BRICS Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Working Group from June 3 to 5 in the coastal city of Puri. Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari announced on Monday that representatives, policymakers, and experts from 11 member and partner nations will attend the high-profile event. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi will officially inaugurate the sessions on June 4, following India's successful chairing of the group's inaugural virtual meeting held on April 29-30.

The international delegates will represent Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Iran, and Indonesia. Over the three-day summit, deliberations will focus heavily on advancing global disaster resilience. Key agendas include sustainable DRR financing, building resilient infrastructure, perfecting anticipatory response frameworks, and integrating local, traditional knowledge into modern disaster management strategies.

Odisha was specifically chosen as the host destination owing to its globally recognized milestones in disaster preparedness, highly effective cyclone management, and advanced early warning systems. The event highlights the growing influence of the expanded BRICS bloc, which now accounts for approximately 49.5 per cent of the global population, 40 per cent of the global GDP, and 26 per cent of global trade, making its collective climate and disaster resilience strategies increasingly vital to global safety.