NEED OF THE STUDY

Disasters may be natural or man-made, both of which are unpredictable. Though natural disasters
are forces of nature completely out of our hands, man-made disasters are relatively in our control
which can be avoided with appropriate awareness and care.
Strategic management is required in all areas of life ranging from personal to professional. I
have, thus, decided to do a study on Disaster Management in order to understand and learn more
about the strategies and to get acquainted with the same.
In order to create awareness about disaster management and its strategies as well as to spread
caution and realization about its importance and cope up with the unpredictability of disasters, I
decided to take up this topic.
This study has been very informative and a great learning to me. I hope that you were able to
benefit from it as well.

OBJECTIVE & METHODOLOGY

OBJECTIVE

My main objectives for making this project report are as follows:

to understand the existing disaster management system of India

to get acquainted with the strategies involved
to create awareness and analyze the responses of people with respect to disaster management

METHODOLOGY

This project report is descriptive in nature and is based on the secondary data attained from the
most widely used secondary resource i.e. through various websites on the Internet.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Disaster management has proceeded with several levels of evolutions in concepts and
applications in the Government network system. Traditionally, Government has played a critical
and major role in emergency & disaster management everywhere in the world. But vast variation
is noticed in effectiveness of Governments role during disaster. Very little is described on the
differential effectiveness of disaster management between two different systems or two
different countries. Uncertainties involved in the subject matter associated with social-political
and economical situation, which influence priorities, can be attributed to the differential disaster
management patterns.
Whereas hazard events cannot be prevented from occurring, devastation and loss can be
prevented to a great extent. Impacts of natural disasters can be reduced through pre-disaster
activities for mitigating risks; and such activities are among the most crucial aspects of disaster
risk reduction to consider in forming a coordinated strategy or plan.
Disasters caused by human beings have become more and more common. Unlike earthquakes
and other natural catastrophes, this "new species of trouble" afflicts persons and groups in
particularly disruptive ways. Modern technological innovations need to be used not only for
better preparedness to generate effective response, but also for investigating the underlying
condition or root cause that produce such an unexpected event and to include appropriate
remedies so as repetition can be avoided or handled more effectively.

INTRODUCTION TO DISASTER MANAGEMENT

A disaster is a consequence of a sudden disastrous event which seriously disrupts the normal
function of the society or the community to the extent that it cannot subsist without outside help.
A disaster is not just the occurrence of an event such as an earthquake, flood, conflict, health
epidemic or an industrial accident; a disaster occurs if that event/process negatively impacts
human populations. Disasters combine two elements: hazard and the vulnerability of affected
people. A disaster occurs when a hazard exposes the vulnerability of individuals and
communities in such a way that their lives are directly threatened or sufficient harm has
been done to their community's economic and social structure to undermine their ability to
survive. A disaster can be defined as any tragic event stemming from events such as earthquakes,
floods, catastrophic accidents, fires or explosions. It is a phenomenon that disasters can cause
damage to life, property and destroy the economic, social and cultural life of people.
Disaster management essentially deals with management of resources and information towards a
disastrous event and is measured by how efficiently, effectively and seamlessly one coordinates
these resources. The ability to effectively deal with disasters has become a challenge to modern
technology. It is apparent that disaster problems cut across various disciplinary lines. One cannot
effectively address disaster management difficulties by focusing on the isolated problems of a
single type. Effective disaster management is influenced by the activities of a host of
independent organisations at national and inter-national level.

DEFINITION & MEANING OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Disaster management (or emergency management) is the creation of plans through which
communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters. Disaster management does
not avert or eliminate the threats; instead, it focuses on creating plans to decrease the effect of
disasters. Failure to create a plan could lead to damage to assets, human mortality, and lost
revenue.

Events

covered

by

disaster

management

include

acts

of terrorism,

industrial sabotage, fire, natural disasters (such as earthquakes, hurricanes, etc.), public disorder,
industrial accidents, and communication failures.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines Disaster as "any occurrence that causes damage,
ecological disruption, loss of human life, deterioration of health and health services, on a scale
sufficient to warrant an extraordinary response from outside the affected community or area."
The United Nations (UN) defines a disaster as a serious disruption of the functioning of a
community or a society. Disasters involve widespread human, material, economic or
environmental impacts, which exceed the ability of the affected community or society to cope
using its own resources.
The Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies define disaster management as the organisation and
management of resources and responsibilities for dealing with all humanitarian aspects of
emergencies, in particular preparedness, response and recovery in order to lessen the impact of
disasters.
Disaster management can be defined as the organization and management of resources and
responsibilities

for

dealing

with

all

humanitarian

aspects

of

emergencies,

in

particular preparedness, response and recovery in order to lessen the impact of disasters. Disaster
management includes sum total of all activities, programs and measures which can be taken up
before, during and after a disaster with the purpose of avoiding, reducing the impact or
recovering from its losses.
A disaster results from a combination of hazards and vulnerability that exceeds the capacity of a
society to reduce the potential negative consequences of risk. Hazard is an extreme event, natural
5

or man-made, with a destructive potential to social, economic and human assets. Disasters are
often described as a result of the combination of: the exposure to a hazard; the conditions of
vulnerability that are present; and insufficient capacity or measures to reduce or cope with the
potential negative consequences.
Disaster impacts may include loss of life, injury, disease and other negative effects on human
physical, mental and social well-being, together with damage to property, destruction of assets,
loss of services, social and economic disruption and environmental degradation. It is beyond the
capability of the local community to overcome it. The stricken community needs extraordinary
efforts to cope with it, often with outside help or international aid. It is a situation resulting from
an environmental phenomenon or armed conflict that produce stress, personal injury, physical
damage, and economic disruption of great magnitude. Disaster management, at the individual
and organisational level, deals with issues of planning, coordination, communication and risk
assessment.

FEATURES OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT

World book, 2001, Chicago has defined disaster as a sudden extremely unfortunate event that
affects many people. It includes natural occurrences such as earthquake, volcanic eruptions,
floods, famine and so on. It also includes man made calamities such as bomb blasts, accidents,
looting and rioting during communal riots, etc.
The following are some of the important features of disaster management.

Disaster Management Teams

Worldwide, governments, business and non-business organisation are setting up disaster or crisis
management teams in order to manage the disaster. The disaster management teams are broadly
divided into three parts namely
The Policy Team
The management Team
The Liaison Team.

Systematic Planning
Disaster management involves systematic planning to avert a disaster, and if it occurs, then
systematic planning is required in order to overcome the crisis arising out of disaster, Disaster
planning indicates, what to do, when to do, how to do and who is to do certain activities to
manage and overcome the problems of disaster.

Organising of Resources
Disaster Management requires proper organising of resources such as manpower, materials,
funds, etc., in order to deal with the calamity. Proper organizing of resources will help the
disaster management personnel to overcome the problems caused by the calamity or disaster.
7

Training to Manpower
To manage a disaster effectively, there is a need to provide proper training to the disaster
management personnel. The training will help to develop and improve Disaster Management
skills in the personnel. Training may help to avert a disaster effectively.

Suitability
Disaster Management is required before and after a disaster. It is suitable before a disaster in
order to avert a disaster, or to caution the people and to take proper appropriate measures before
the disaster strikes. Disaster Management is also very much required after a disaster takes place
in order to undertake rescue, relief and rehabilitation measures at the time of floods, earthquakes.

Stability
Normally, disaster management teams lack stability. They are formed just prior to a disaster in
order to avert it, whenever possible. However, in advanced countries such as in USA, UK, Japan,
etc., some organisations form more or less permanent Disaster Management teams.

Organisation Structure
Robert F. Littlejohn in his paper on Crisis Management suggested a matrix organisation
structure to deal with disaster or crisis in the organisation or in the city or country. The disaster
management team is to be headed by a crisis manager.

IMPORTANCE OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Disasters are very frequent this days and it brings immense loss to lives and property. Not only
that, it brings along with it unforgettable trauma, which ever remains memorable in the minds of
the people.
Disaster management is vital for the following purposes which prove its importance.

To Avert a Disaster
Disaster management teams can help to avert a disaster before it occurs. The Disaster
management team may examine the possible causes of disaster, and may take appropriate
measures to avert a disaster. For instance, forest fires, or even terrorists bombings can be averted
through effective planning and pre-emptive action.

To Undertake Rescue Operations

Disaster management personnel can undertake rescue operations effectively. Trained disaster
management personnel can rescue people effectively at the time of floods, major fires, building
collapses, and so on.

To Provide Relief Measures

Disaster management team is responsible to provide relief measures to the victims. For instance,
the team can make arrangement for food, clothing, and relief camps, medicines and so on. Such
measures would reduce the misery of the disaster victims.

To Undertake Rehabilitation Programmes

Disaster management team can work effectively to undertake rehabilitation programmes in the
affected areas. For instance, in the earthquake affected areas, rehabilitation programmes include:
Construction of dwellings
Schools and other infrastructure

To Undertake Liaison Work

The disaster management team undertakes liaison work relating to the disaster. The liaison work
is required with various agencies-private and government (including hospitals) in order to obtain
funds and donations, and other resources or services so as to manage and overcome the disaster.

To Reduce Trauma and Tension

The Disaster management team can help to reduce the trauma and tension before and after the
disaster. For instance, before a disaster, the team can properly guide the people to face or handle
the disaster such as floods. Also, after the disaster, the team can provide not only material or
financial support, but also psychological support to overcome the traumatic effect of disaster.

To Protect the Environment

Disaster management team can help to protect and preserve the environment. For example, a
disaster management team can plan pre-emptive action to avert forest fires. Etc.

To Minimize Losses
Disaster management teams can help to minimize loss of life and property. This is because; the
Disaster management team can take pre-emptive actions to avert a disaster.

TYPES OF DISASTERS
10

Disasters are broadly divided into Man-made disasters and Natural disasters. In addition this, it is
also categorized into Biological disasters. Some of the various types of disasters are as follows:

NATURAL DISASTERS
The Indian sub continent is highly prone to natural disasters. Floods, droughts, cyclones and
earthquakes are recurrent phenomena in India. Susceptibility to disasters is compounded by
frequent occurrences of man-made disasters such as fire. The changing topography (topo = land)
due to environmental degradation also increasing vulnerability to natural disasters. Natural
disasters cannot be prevented but their damaging impact can be reduced through better forecast,
and preparedness to take up effective rescue measures. Disaster risk management is essentially a
development problem. Preparedness and planning for disaster management have to be taken up
along with environmental concerns that the country is facing today. Certain disasters occur in
nature, without human provocation. They are described below:

11

Flood
Floods are sudden and temporary inundation of a large area as an overflowing of rivers or
reservoirs. Floods are caused by rains, high winds, cyclones, tsunami, melting snow or dam
burst. Flood can happen gradually or can happen suddenly due to heavy rains, breach of the
water storage and control structures, spillover. Apart from the loss of human and cattle life,
floods cause severe devastation of standing agricultural crops. Flood control can be achieved
through various means such as by reducing the run-off water through afforestation or through
construction of dams.

Drought
Drought is an event that results from lower than normal expected rainfall over a season or period.
Short fall in rain results in drying of rivers, lakes, reservoirs and drying of wells due to excessive
withdrawal and poor recharge of ground water and loss of crop yield due to shortage of water are
some of the main indicators of drought. As per Meteorological Department if rainfall is deficient
by more than 10% of the annual average rainfall, the condition is said to be that of drought. Rain
water harvesting, economizing water consumption, by increasing water use efficiency, reducing
wastage, reusing the wastewater for inferior uses, use of efficient methods of irrigation and
sowing low water-consuming crops are the various measures that can be implemented to
overcome drought.

Earthquake
Earthquake is a sudden release of energy accumulated in deformed rocks of earth crust causing
the ground to tremble or shake and can occur suddenly any time of the year without any warning,
causing severe loss of life and property. Earthquakes may cause physical damage to the
buildings, roads, dams, buildings and monuments. Human and livestock deaths or serious
injuries from collapsing of building are common, followed by outbreak of epidemics like
cholera, diarrhoea, and infectious diseases. Utilities such as water supply, sewerage,
communication lines, power-lines, transportation network, and railways get damaged.
12

Cyclone
Cyclones are violent storms, often of vast extent, characterised by strong and high winds rotating
about a calm center of low atmospheric pressure. Cyclones strike suddenly though it takes time
for them to build up. Cyclone is generally followed by heavy rains causing floods. Satellite
tracking can predict on possible affected areas and inhabitants fore-warned can be made for
warning. Warning and evacuation is done along the projected path.

Tsunami
Tsunami is also called seismic sea wave, or tidal wave, catastrophic ocean wave, usually caused
by a submarine earthquake occurring less than 50 km (30 miles) beneath the seafloor, with a
magnitude greater than 6.5 on the Richter scale. Underwater or coastal landslides or volcanic
eruptions also may cause a tsunami. In a tsunami a train of simple, progressive oscillatory waves
is propagated to great distances at the ocean surface in ever-widening circles, much like the
waves produced by a pebble falling into a shallow pool. The famous tsunami of December 2004
has had devastating effects in many countries particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka,
India, etc

MAN-MADE DISASTERS
Man-made disasters are those hazards caused directly or indirectly by human action or inaction.
They can be contrasted with natural hazards. Man-made disasters may adversely affect humans,
other organisms and biomes and eco-systems.

13

Fires
Fires are events of burning something. They are often destructive taking up toll of life and
property. It is observed that more people die in a fire than in a cyclone, earthquake, floods and
other natural disasters combined. Fires are a great threat to forests and wild life because they
spread speedily and cause tremendous damage in a short time. Death of humans and livestock
may occur due to burning or serious injuries from fire. In rural areas often the entire harvested
crop stored in securely may catch fire and burn to ashes resulting in heavy loss to the owner.

Road, Rail & Air Accidents:

Road Accidents
Road networks are developed for better connectivity and service. Increased number of
vehicles, violation of traffic rules, speeding, drunken driving and poor maintenance of
vehicles as well as of roads are some of the main causes of road accidents.
Rail Accident
The most common type of rail accident is derailment due to human error, sabotage or natural
landslide in a hilly track, or fire. Rail accidents lead to large number of casualties and
material damage. Indian Railways incur heavy loss due to such accidents every year.
Air Accidents
Air accidents may occur due to technical problems, fire, poor landing and take-off, weather
conditions, hijacking, bombing etc.

Industrial Accidents
Industrial accidents can be due to explosion, fire and leakage of toxic or hazardous chemicals
and lead to heavy loss of life and material. Leakage of chemicals and explosion may be due to
human error, technological failure or geological hazards like earthquakes, flood etc. Fire in an
industry may result from human error or electrical faults (short circuit). Employees and residents
14

of nearby localities and their live-stock and crops in nearby areas are severely affected. The
environment over a large area gets polluted. Hazardous chemicals released into the atmosphere
or into a water body may travel long distances and may even damage the entire ecosystem
around the industrial area.

BIOLOGICAL DISASTERS
Also known as biohazards, they refer to biological substances that pose a threat to the health of
living organisms, primarily that of humans. This can include medical waste or samples of
a microorganism, virus or toxin (from a biological source) that can affect human health. It can
also include substances harmful to animals. Examples: anthrax, smallpox, plague, tularemia,
brucellosis and botulinism toxin, bird flu which can result into epidemics.

15

Epidemics
Epidemic is defined as occurrence of an illness or other health related event that is unusually
affecting a large population. An epidemic can be anticipated by a sudden increase in the number
of people suffering from a particular disease, increase in the population disease carrier. In order
to control the spread of epidemics, urgent measures are essential. Outbreaks of communicable
disease to ready epidemic level are potentially high after a disaster. The outbreak of diseases is
mainly due to poor sanitary condition leading to contamination of water or spread of disease
form breeding of the disease vectors. Other factors include seasonal changes that favour breeding
of insects, vectors, exposure of a non-immune population (e.g. tourists or migrants), poverty and
overcrowding. Epidemic may cause mass illness or death. There are secondary effects such as
disruption in the society and economic losses. Vulnerability is high among those who are poorly
nourished, people living in unhygienic in sanitary conditions, poor quality of water supply, lack
of access to health services. Preventive public health measures needs to be strengthened.
Personal protection through vaccination is an effective mitigation measure. Improvement of
sanitary conditions, fumigation of vector breeding sites and proper disposal of domestic and
municipal wastes greatly reduce chances of epidemic spread of diseases.

16

CHALLENGES OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT

The hazards of nature and the vulnerabilities of social, economic and environmental conditions
combine to make India one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world. Nearly all of
Indias one billion-plus people are exposed to one or more forms of natural disasters. Disasters
bring about the loss of lives, property, employment and damage to the physical infrastructure and
the environment. There is a perceived gap in information coordination and sharing within the
context of disaster management. Identification of key disaster knowledge factors will be an
enabler to manage disasters successfully.

Climatic Challenge
There are three major ways in which global warming will make changes to regional climate:
melting or forming ice, changing the hydrological cycle and changing currents in the oceans and
air flows in the atmosphere. These pose as serious challenges for disaster management managers.
Studies on climate change paint a very dismal picture of future world. The amount of water India
gets has not changed, but who gets how much and when, is changing. Climate change has far
reaching implications for managing disaster risk in India, as the frequency and intensity of flash
floods, landslides, droughts, cyclones, and storm surges are expected to increase in upcoming
decades.

Population Challenge
In addition to global warming, rapid population growth particularly in urban areas of developing
nations is posing serious problems for disaster management. This phenomenon results in
construction of apartments, buildings that do not follow safety laws. The unplanned growth of
urban areas makes response much more difficult. Unsafe building practices in rapidly growing
urban settlements constitute one of Indias greatest challenges for disaster management.

17

Democratization of Information Challenge

Now-a-days, flow of information from site of disaster is extremely fast. As such response has to
be not only timely but adequate and appropriate too. This would require preparedness of highest
order where no response agencies can afford to make mistakes. In view of the above,
governments do realize that disaster response must have exclusive mandate. The deployment of
outside forces has a cost in terms of time lag which may be critical at many times. But the state
police especially at the police station level being closest to society reach the site at the earliest
point of time. More importantly people too perceive policemen as their support in distress. Hence
there is urgent need to strength the police station alongside creation of specialized forces.

Technological Challenge
In relation to technological factors, the need for cost effective and proactive technologies is
highlighted over reactive use of technologies. Communication is one of the areas which needs
technological support. Effective technology will not cause a positive impact unless the people
who use them have the required competency and knowledge. The key issue related to this aspect
is lack of training. There is a need to address the social, political, institutional and behavioural
barriers in implementation of the required technology. The effective use of technology to create
networks among communities and cross networks between the policy makers and the
communities is the area which needs further improvement.

18

Social Challenge
People need to be educated and trained properly to engage in overall disaster management cycle.
Accordingly, people should make aware of any potential disasters and their collective
responsibility in preventing or minimising the effects of disasters. These will help to make
preparedness part of their lives or enhance their culture of preparedness. While some people
believe disasters can be prevented, some people do not learn lessons from previous disasters as
they struggle for life which takes their focus away. Social factors should be given a thorough
consideration throughout the disaster management cycle. However, social factors are less
concerned during the long term reconstruction and preparedness/mitigation phases and a much
more attention is paid during the relief stage. Building networks among people and between
people and policy makers is viewed as a possible solution for this.

Economical Challenge
Economic Planning Measures
Risk assessment or vulnerability analysis of countrys wealth generation mechanism is
accepted as a more prominent part of long term economic planning. However, it is found that
lack of investment hampers this process. Therefore, long term reconstruction should focus on
both, recovering the damaged infrastructure and looking for alternatives rather than focusing
only on repairing the existing facilities.
Financial Aspect
Rigid policies in handling money hinder rapid decision making in the aftermath of disasters.
Reconstruction and preparedness/mitigation phases attract less finance on the contrary to
relief stage. One possible reason for this is disaster management not getting priority in
allocation of finance. However, as proactive approaches to disaster management could bring
much benefit, investments in reconstruction and preparedness/mitigation phases should be
prioritised. The accountability of post disaster reconstruction should be improved.
Nonetheless, in a disaster situation things are not certain and it needs much more flexible
accounting system.

19

Environmental Challenge
It is reported that similar scale of disasters cause different effects in different countries due to
different environmental factors, different population densities and different planning and
building regulation standards. A built environment has an important role to play in minimising
the effects of natural disasters. Accordingly, a thorough understanding of the environmental
factors and their influence is needed by the policy makers, professionals and communities along
with a broad understanding of the forces of nature and the environment. Building regulations
should be based on proper vulnerability analysis of the environment.

Legal Challenges
Implementation of law is identified as a major shortcoming. Even so, there are already developed
policies related to the impact mitigation of disasters. The implementation of those policies is
found to be lacking. Furthermore, the laws which do not address the humanitarian aspect of
disaster management have become unsuccessful in its implementation. Within disaster context, it
is highly unlikely to execute laws which cover the every aspect of disasters as they encounter
new circumstances which are not encountered before. Therefore, it is contended that disaster
related laws should be updated regularly.

20

Institutional Challenge
Proper institutional formation and integration are vitally important in managing disasters
successfully. Hence, the capacity of these institutions need be reviewed and empowered
according to the needs. Particularly the disaster related knowledge and skills need to be
improved along with a centralised institution which monitors and oversees all the other
institutions need to be formed.

Operational Challenge
Reasons for some failures in disaster management were down to the quality of leadership. Also,
the communication among affected communities and between the affected communities and
policy makers should be enhanced. Moreover, providing the required training and necessary
resources including financial, time and manpower are essential in managing the disasters
successfully. Another area which needs attention is developing a common vocabulary that could
bring together various disciplines in the disaster management field. Therefore, knowledge based
standardisation tools that could link different organisations and platforms need to be developed.

Political Challenge
Studies on political expectations in context of disaster management are recommended to
minimise the mismatches between political agendas and disaster management agendas. Most
importantly it is highlighted that the long term perspectives of disaster management should not
be dominated by the short term political perspectives.

21

DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN INDIA

Many international organizations, voluntary agencies and national governments have been
working towards reducing the impact of disasters and minimize the loss of life and property on
account of manmade and natural disasters. These efforts have been directed at identifying the
vulnerability of areas and local communities and developing organisational systems and
institutional capacity for risk reduction and disaster response programmes.
In India, the Disaster Management Act, 2005 was enacted on December 26, 2005 to develop
plans for prevention and mitigation, and procedures to strengthen capacity building and
awareness among people. The Act also permits states to have their own legislation on disaster
management. Under the Act, a ten member National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)
was constituted with the prime minister as the chairperson. The Authority, with the assistance of
the National Executive Committee (NEC) of Secretaries is responsible for: Preparing national
policies, plans and guidelines for disaster management. Approving disaster management plans
developed by the states. Coordinate enforcement and implementation of the policy and plan,
Arrange for funds and take effective measures for disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness
and capacity management. Provide assistance to countries affected by disasters. Each state has its
own disaster management authority, which is chaired by the chief minister. The state authority,
assisted by a State Executive Committee, forms policies and plans for disaster management in
the state. A district disaster management authority has also been established by every state in
each district. The district authority is headed by the district magistrate. The local authority trains
its officers and employees and maintains the necessary tools and equipments for relief and rescue
operations. It also ensures that all construction projects under it conform to the standards and
specifications which are laid down by the state government.
Under the Act, several institutions and funds at the state and district levels were set up.
National Disaster Response Force is the government agency primarily responsible for emergency
management during natural and man-made disasters, with specialized skills in search, rescue and
rehabilitation.

22

National Institute of Disaster Management is a training institution for developing guidelines and
training programs for mitigating disasters and managing crisis response.
National Fund for Disaster Response, for which the funds are decided by the central government,
is made available to the NEC, which meets the expenses towards emergency response, relief and
rehabilitation. National Fund for Disaster Mitigation will be directly managed by the National
Disaster Management Authority, and will be used exclusively for the purpose of mitigation.
The Act requires every ministry or department of the Government of India to set aside funds in
its annual budget for the activities and programmes set out in its disaster management plan.
Schemes for financing expenditure on relief and rehabilitation in the wake of natural calamities
are governed by the recommendations of Finance Commissions appointed by the Government of
India every five years. Under the Tenth Finance Commission, in operation for the period 19952000, each state had a corpus of funds called the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF), administered by a
state level committee, headed by the chief secretary of the state government. The size of the
corpus was determined on the basis of the vulnerability of the state to different natural calamities
and the magnitude of expenditure normally incurred by the state on relief operations.
Aniruddha's Academy of Disaster Management (ACDM) is a non-profit organization in Mumbai, India
with 'disaster management' as its principal objective.

23

STRATEGIC WAYS OF MANAGING DISASTERS IN INDIA

Disasters are becoming more frequent, growing more severe and affecting more people than ever
before, the reasons varying. Effective disaster management or disaster response can be defined as
providing the technology, tools and practices that enable disaster response organizations to
systematically manage information from multiple sources and collaborate effectively to assist
survivors, mitigate damage and help communities rebuild.
Disaster management occupies an important place in this countrys policy framework as it is the
poor and the under-privileged who are worst affected on account of calamities/disasters. The
steps being taken by the Government emanate from the approach outlined above. The approach
has been translated into a National Disaster Framework [a roadmap] covering institutional
mechanisms, disaster prevention strategy, early warning system, disaster mitigation,
preparedness and response and human resource development.
The Disaster Management Act, 2005 provides for "the effective management of disasters and for
matters connected therewith or incidental thereto."

NATIONAL LEVEL
At the national level, the Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal Ministry for all matters
concerning disaster management. The Central Relief Commissioner (CRC) in the Ministry of
Home Affairs is the nodal officer to coordinate relief operations for natural disasters. The CRC
receives information relating to forecasting/warning of a natural calamity from India
Meteorological Department (IMD) or from Central Water Commission of Ministry of Water
Resources and other such departments and organizations concerned with the primary and
secondary functions relating to the management of disasters on a continuing basis. Each
Ministry/Department/Organization nominates their nodal officer to the Crisis Management
Group chaired by Central Relief Commissioner. The nodal officer is responsible for preparing
sectoral Action Plan/Emergency Support Function Plan for managing disasters.

24

 National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)

NDMA is an agency of the Ministry of Home Affairs whose primary purpose is to coordinate
response to natural or man-made disasters and for capacity-building in disaster resiliency and
crisis response. NDMA equips and trains other Government officials, institutions and the
community in mitigation for and response during a crisis situation or a disaster. It operates
the National Institute of Disaster Management, which develops practices, delivers hands-on
training and organizes drills for disaster management. It also equips and trains disaster
management cells at the state and local levels.

National Executive Committee (NEC)

The Act enjoins the Central Government to Constitute a National Executive Committee
(NEC) to assist the National Authority. The NEC under section of the Act is responsible for
the preparation of the National Disaster Management Plan for the whole country and to
ensure that it is "reviewed and updated annually".
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF)
It is an Indian police force constituted "for the purpose of specialist response to a threatening
disaster situation or disaster" under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. In the previous

25

years, NDRF has proved its efficacy with its commendable performance during various
disasters

including

the drowning

cases, building

collapses, landslides, devastating

floods and Cyclones. Recently in September 2014 Kashmir floods, NDRF played a vital role
in rescuing the armed forces and tourists, for which NDRF was awarded by the government
of India.

STATE LEVEL
The Government of India is working with the State Governments to convert the Departments of
Relief & Rehabilitation into Departments of Disaster Management with an enhanced area of
responsibility to include mitigation and preparedness apart from their present responsibilities of
relief and rehabilitation. The States have also been asked to set up Disaster Management
Authorities under the Chief Minister with Ministers of relevant Departments as members.
State Disaster Management Authority
All State Governments are mandated to establish a State Disaster Management Authority
(SDMA). State Executive Committee is responsible for drawing up the state disaster
management plan and implementing the National Plan. The SDMA is mandated to ensure
that all the departments of the State prepare disaster management plans as prescribed by the
National and State Authorities

26

DISTRICT LEVEL
At the district level, the District Magistrate who is the chief coordinator will be the focal point
for coordinating all activities relating to prevention, mitigation and preparedness apart from his
existing responsibilities pertaining to response and relief. The District Coordination and Relief
Committee is being reconstituted/re-designated into Disaster Management Committees with
officers from relevant departments being added as members. Because of its enhanced mandate of
mitigation and prevention, the district heads and departments engaged 12 in development will
now be added to the Committee so that mitigation and prevention is mainstreamed into the
district plan. District Disaster Management Committees have already been constituted in several
districts and are in the process of being constituted in the remaining multi-hazard prone districts.

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DISASTER RISK REDUCTION

It is a systematic approach to identifying, assessing and reducing the risks of disaster. It aims to
reduce socio-economic vulnerabilities to disaster as well as dealing with the environmental and
other hazards that trigger them. It is the responsibility of development and relief agencies alike.
It should be an integral part of the way such organizations do their work, not an add-on or oneoff action. Disaster Risk Reduction is very wide-ranging. Its scope is much broader and deeper
than conventional emergency management. There is potential for Disaster Risk Reduction
initiatives in just about every sector of development and humanitarian work. Disaster risk
reduction is the concept and practice of reducing disaster risks through systematic efforts to
analyse and reduce the causal factors of disasters. Reducing exposure to hazards, lessening
vulnerability of people and property, wise management of land and the environment, and
improving preparedness and early warning for adverse events are all examples of disaster risk
reduction. Disaster Risk Reduction can take place in the following ways:

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS
Preparedness for the first and immediate response is called emergency preparedness. This
protective process embraces measures which enable governments, communities and individuals
to respond rapidly to disaster situations to cope with them effectively. Preparedness includes the
formulation of viable emergency plans, the development of warning systems, the maintenance of
inventories and the training of personnel. It may also embrace search and rescue measures as
well as evacuation plans for areas that may be at risk from a recurring disaster. Preparedness
therefore encompasses those measures taken before a disaster event which are aimed at
minimizing loss of life, disruption of critical services, and damage when the disaster occurs.

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MITIGATION
Mitigation embraces measures taken to reduce both the effect of the hazard and the vulnerable
conditions to it in order to reduce the scale of a future disaster. Therefore mitigation activities can
be focused on the hazard itself or the elements exposed to the threat. Examples of mitigation
measures which are hazard specific include water management in drought prone areas, relocating
people away from the hazard prone areas and by strengthening structures to reduce damage when
a hazard occurs. In addition to these physical measures, mitigation should also aim at reducing
the economic and social vulnerabilities of potential disasters.

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RESPONSE
The response phase includes the mobilization of the necessary emergency services and first
responders in the disaster area. This is likely to include a first wave of core emergency services,
such as firefighters, police and ambulance crews. They may be supported by a number of
secondary emergency services, such as specialist rescue teams. In addition volunteers and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) such as the local Red Cross branch may provide immediate
practical assistance, from first aid provision to providing food and counseling. A well rehearsed
emergency plan developed as part of the preparedness phase enables efficient coordination of
rescue efforts. Emergency plan rehearsal is essential to achieve optimal output with limited
resources. In the response phase, medical assets will be used in accordance with the appropriate
triage of the affected victims. Where required, search and rescue efforts commence at an early
stage. Depending on injuries sustained by the victim, outside temperature, and victim access to
air and water, the vast majority of those affected by a disaster will die within 72 hours after
impact. Individuals are often compelled to volunteer directly after a disaster. Volunteers can be
both a help and a hindrance to emergency management and other relief agencies.

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DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN THE CORPORATE SECTOR

The corporate sector is an integral part of the society. It can play a leading role in supporting and
building the knowledge, capacity and skills of the community in comprehensive risk-based
disaster management activities ranging from prevention, mitigation and preparedness to response
and recovery. In keeping with the paradigm shift in its approach to disaster management brought
about by the Government of India and the recurring phenomenon of natural disasters impacting
all sectors of socio-economic life, including the corporate sector, and inflicting heavy economic
losses, focused attention has been given to risk mitigation endeavors to systematically reduce the
vulnerabilities.
The corporate sector possesses huge resources human, material, technical and financial and
has significant presence in every region in the country. It also works and interacts with the
community very closely and has an important stake in the well-being and prosperity of the
community as its own progress and capability is largely dependent upon a resilient and safe
community. However, in keeping with the change in focus to the pre-disaster aspects of
prevention, mitigation and preparedness to mount an all-round assault on vulnerabilities and
building of capacities at all levels, a lot of emphasis has been laid on integrating the disaster risk
reduction and risk management aspects into the functioning and processes of industries. The
strategic framework envisages involvement of corporate bodies in entire range of issues
connected with integrating disaster management concerns in the developmental efforts of the
private sector with a specific emphasis on pre-disaster aspects.
Moreover, the corporate sector organizations have linkages with other similar organizations in
different countries and regularly exchange and supplement each others information and
resources in times of need. It is, therefore, imperative for the success of initiatives in the area of
disaster risk management that corporate sector organizations and their networks are associated
with different facets of disaster management.

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Disaster Management will not only help pooling of resources but would also facilitate exchange
of information and expertise across sectors, learn from each others experience and best
practices. The objective of disaster management initiatives is to consciously move towards
strengthening the national capabilities in accordance with the status acquired by India as a selfsufficient and self-respecting nation well-positioned to mount an effective and substantive
disaster response and to take care of the concerns with reference to disaster management across
different sectors. The governmental efforts have received commendable support from
individuals, organizations, the corporate sector and the society at large. However, effective
disaster management is a long-drawn battle against the formidable forces of nature and
necessitates devising a comprehensive strategy and work plan based on the lessons learned and
experiences gained from every disaster. The shortcomings and gaps need to be addressed and
successes built upon. The Government of India as well as other stakeholders, including the
corporate sector, have reaffirmed their commitment and resolve to achieve the objective of
moving towards a disaster resilient and safe nation. No effort will be spared and no constraint
would be allowed to hinder the progress towards creating a safe and disaster-free nation and the
challenge thrown by successive disasters will be converted into an opportunity for further
strengthening disaster risk management measures.

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CASE STUDIES
Let us view the case studies of disaster management and its strategies in our very own state of
Maharashtra.

Case Study I: Disaster Management at Religious Places - Pedkai Mata Temple, Dhule
Religious places draw several thousands, and in some cases even several lakhs of devotees in a
day. Some of these places are located on hill tops. Approach roads or stairs are very narrow
which makes the lives of devotees vulnerable to hazards. In the past, some of the religious places
namely Mandhar Devi of Satara, Maha Kaleshwar temple of Ujjain, Sabarimala shire of Kerala,
etc have witnessed gory stampedes, leading to loss of several lives.

Taking a cue from such incidences, the risk assessment and resource mapping was done for
Pedkai Mata Temple in Sindhkheda taluka, Dhule where a fair is held in April / May every year.
This place of worship is situated on a hill at about 200 meters above the mean sea level. The

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Trust managing the affairs of the temple had constructed a structure mainly of ramps connecting
the three tier platforms to enable the devotees reach the temple. However, the site is highly
vulnerable for the devotees especially during the fair / Mela as railings and separate exit paths
were missing. Before the annual fair, a comprehensive risk analysis and response strategy
including identification of resources was finalized.

In association with the Temple Trust officials and other stakeholders, following risks were
identified:

No railings on ramps that are used to ascend/descend from the temple at about 200 mtrs high.
There was no separate exit way
The site was in forest and nearest hospital is 40 Kms. away
Religious rituals of breaking coconuts, offering Ghee/ oil and performing/ offering prayers by
lighting lamps within the small area in front of temple on the top most platform ( without
roof) leads possibility of making the platform slippery and cases of heat stroke due to rise in

humidity level in hot sun (about 47 C temp.)

First aid facility at the site was not efficient.
No framework for communication and evacuation to the hospitals.
Devotees exposed to hot sun for several hours may lead to heat strokes.

The site was thoroughly examined with the help of Government Officials and following
preventive & mitigation measures were decided:

Create temporary but firm railings on the ramps on both the sides.
Divide ramp by using steel pipes/ bamboo barricades for separate in and out traffic.
Arrangement for first-aid facility during the fair and keep an ambulance and a physician with

paramedical staff stationed at the fair.

To liaise with Police for sufficient Police deployment at the fair.
To demarcate suitable place for offering ghee / breaking coconuts / lighting lamps near lower
tiers away from the sanctum sanctorum.

Police personnel and volunteers were deployed to regulate the traffic of the devotees.

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All went smoothly till 11: 20 am on 6th April, 2006. At this time the inflow of the devotees was
at its peak. It was noticed that the return devotees had almost stopped at the base of the hill and
heavy congestion of devotees at the top ramp could be seen. The upward flow was still on and
there was probability of stampede. The barricades dividing the in & out ways was shifted closing
the out way. Immediately the inflow at the hill base was stopped and started clearing the crowd
by sending the devotees to the base of the hill
At noon, a small fire erupted and though fire was localized but the smoke reached to the top of
temple, which created panic among devotees. The fire was put off soon by pouring water by the
volunteers. But the panic did not give rise to stampede. The possibility of a disaster was averted
as the lower floors and ramps were cleared sufficiently in advance and that provided ample space
for exit.

Case Study II: Capacity Building Paid Dividend, Ahmednagar

Ahmednagar, one of the DRM programme districts, is the biggest district of Maharashtra in
terms of geographical area. It has 1586 villages and 1310 Gram Panchayats spread within 14
talukas. Ahmednagar is a drought-prone district and the average rainfall is about 498 mm.
However, the year 2006 was different as this district witnessed unprecedented floods.
One of the villages that was devastated by the floods of 2006, is Jainpur. Jainpur village is
located in Newasa taluka of Shrirampur sub-division. Mr. Dike, an ex-PRI (Panchayati Raj
Institutions) member, remembers the situation of August 2006 when release of 2.81 lakh cusses
of water in Godavari river from Nandurmadhameshwar dam in Nashik district coupled with the
heavy rainfall in Ahmednagar, wrought havoc across the district. His village, Jainpur, was
heavily flooded due to release of water from Nandurmadhameshwar and backwater of Jaikwadi
dam.

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Mr. Dike [left] during one of the capacity building

As soon as water started entering the low lying areas, he immediately informed the tehsil office
as well as the district Control Room on 1077 and kept on updating the situation of his village.
Leading from the front, he with the help of village talahti, police patil, other PRI members and a
few volunteers, undertook the evacuation task. The local vehicles were used for shifting people
to safer places. With the help of Saibaba Sansthan and Shaneshwar Sansthan, the food packers
were arranged for the evacuated population.
The rainfall was relentless and was raining cats and dogs, hence water level was rising. As a
response as well as precautionary measure, Mr. Dike with the help of Mr. Dnaydev Patare,
Director, Ashok Sahekari Sakhar Karkhana arranged a private hodi [small boat] from the nearby
village for the rescue operation. On further rise of water level in village, he contacted the
tahsildar and then the district control room and two columns of army was pressed into evacuation
task.

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QUESTIONNAIRE
In order to understand the views of the common people with respect to disaster management as
well as to spread awareness of the same, I conducted an online survey where ninety seven
respondents results are displayed as follows:

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CONCLUSION

Disaster Management has to be a multi-disciplinary and pro-active approach. Besides various

measures for putting in place institutional and policy framework, disaster prevention, mitigation
and preparedness and initiatives being taken by the Central and State Governments, the
community, civil society organizations and media also have a key role to play in achieving our
goal of moving together, towards a safer India. The message being put across is that, in order to
move towards safer and sustainable national development, development projects should be
sensitive towards disaster mitigation.
Our mission is vulnerability reduction to all types of hazards, be it natural or manmade. This is
not an easy task to achieve, keeping in view the vast population, and the multiple hazards to
which this country is exposed. However, if we are firm in our conviction and resolve that the
Government and the people of this country are not prepared to pay the price in terms of massive
casualties and economic losses, the task, though difficult, is achievable and we shall achieve it.
We have taken the first few but significant steps towards vulnerability reduction, putting in place
prevention and mitigation measures and preparedness for a rapid and professional response. With
a massive awareness generation campaign and building up of capabilities as well as
institutionalization of the entire mechanism through a techno legal and techno financial
framework, we are gradually moving in the direction of sustainable development.
Our vision should be to build a safer and secure India through sustained collective effort, synergy
of national capacities and peoples participation. The path ahead, which looks difficult today, will
become a lot easier as we move along together.

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REFERENCE

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_management
http://www.ifrc.org/en/what-we-do/disaster-management/about-disaster-management/
https://www.academia.edu/8610063/
http://nbr.org/publications/element.aspx?id=549
http://bipard.bih.nic.in/ebooks/Research/Chap-6.pdf
http://usir.salford.ac.uk/23366/1/23366.pdf
http://www.omtexclasses.com/2010/02/
https://www.quora.com/
http://www.emergencymgmt.com/disaster/Effective-Disaster-Management-

Strategies.html
http://www.unisdr.org/2005/mdgs-drr/national-reports/India-report.pdf
https://www.unisdr.org/who-we-are/what-is-drr
http://web4.uwindsor.ca/units/archive/disaster.nsf/
http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/disasters/disaster-management/
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/
http://www.preventionweb.net/files/17397_maharashtraexperience.pdf

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