Disaster Mitigation

and Management

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 Disaster Management Cycle
o Activities, programmes and measures taken
up before, during and after a disaster with
the purpose to avoid a disaster, reduce its
impact or recover from its losses.
o Before – To avoid a disaster or warning for
disaster
o During – To reduce its impact
o After – To recover from its losses
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Stages of activities in disaster risk
management
o Before a disaster (Pre-disaster)
- Activities taken to reduce human and
property losses caused by a potential hazard.
- Awareness meeting, strengthening the
existing weak structures. Preparation of the
disaster management plans at household and
community level
- MITIGATION AND PREPAREDNESS ACTIVITIES
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 Stages of activities in disaster risk
management
o During a disaster (Disaster occurrence)
- Initiatives taken to ensure that the needs
and provisions of victims are met and
suffering is minimized
- EMERGENCY RESPONSE ACTIVITIES

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Stages of activities in disaster risk
management
o After a disaster (Post-disaster)
- Activities taken to achieve early
recovery and rehabilitation of affected
communities, immediately after disaster
- RESPONSE AND RECOVERY ACTIVITIES

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Diaster Mitigation and Management - JEYASHREE
 Disaster Management Cycle

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 Disaster Management Cycle

 Highlights the role of the media where there is a strong relationship

between this and funding opportunities.
 Applicable for relatively sudden-onset disasters, such as floods,
earthquakes, bushfires, tsunamis, cyclones etc., but is less
reflective of slow-onset disasters, such as drought
 Drought - no obviously recognizable single event which triggers
the movement into the Emergency Response stage

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Disaster Management??

Disaster management aims to reduce, or

avoid the potential losses from hazards,
assure prompt and appropriate assistance
to victims of disaster, and achieve rapid and
effective recovery.

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 Disaster Management Cycle - Phases

 MITIGATION – Minimizing the effects of disaster

 PREPAREDNESS – Planning how to respond
 RESPONSE – Efforts to minimize the hazards created by a
disaster
 RECOVERY – Returning the community to normal
History of disaster
1994 to1998 – 428/year
1999 to 2003 – 707/year
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Reported death from all disasters:
World Scenario (1992 – 2001)

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 Indian Scenario
 Disasters – Cyclones, droughts, earthquakes and floods. Forest fire and
landslides occur frequently in the Himalayan region of northern India
 25 States/Union Territories are disaster prone

Year Total number of Total number of

People reported People reported
killed affected Droughts
1986-1995 42,026 561,472,995 and
famines
1996-2005 85,001 686,724,143
2005 5,405 28,262,805
 Floods, earthquake – disaster in major disaster in India (Last ten years)
 1973 – 2001 (Many earthquakes in asia)

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 Effects of disaster

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 Effects of disaster
Economy, agriculture, infrastructure,
food security, water sanitation,
environment – Gets affected

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 Effects of disaster
Type of disaster Effects

Drought Losses of heavy crop and

livestock but infrastructure is
largely unaffected
Floods and cyclones Damage to both infrastructure
and agriculture (Agricultural
cycle)
Earthquake Cause wide spread
devastation of infrastructure
and localized loss to crops

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 Improvement required in disaster
management cycle
 Disasters – not only lead to loss of shelter but also create loss
of food availability, temporary loss of livelihood and disrupt in
socio-economic activities
 Losses may be redeemable and compensated through
insurance
 Disaster also makes disturbances in psychological and social
dimensions as well which has to be used in developing
appropriate mitigation strategies

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Case Study – Flash floods
in Leh (Ladakh) 2010

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Reference: Preeti Gupta et al., “Disaster Management in Flash Floods in
Leh (Ladakh) : A Case Study”, Indian J Community Med, 2012
 Disaster in Ladakh 2010
When?
August 6, 2010 in midnight
Flash floods occurred due to cloud burst in Ladakh
History
Ladakh – 3500 m above MSL and usually
receives a rainfall of around 100 mm per year.
Described as high-altitude cold desert
Tourist spot

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 Flood in Ladakh
Cloudburst time – 12:00 to 12:30 AM (Extended
for 2 hours)
12.8 millimetres of rainfall was recorded on the
night of 6 August at Leh Airport
Some places – 250 millimetres was recorded
Indus River and its tributaries and water ways -
overflowing

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 Impact of disaster
Many buildings including hospitals were
destroyed
Bus terminal, telephone exchange,
transmission towers and communication
– affected
Debris flow and mud flow
Transport facilities were affected
Economic impact
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 Impact of disaster
No. of people killed 234
(49.6% - Local residents
10.2% - Foreigners
32.5% - Tourists
18% - Unidentified)
(61.5% - Male
38.5% - Female)
No. of people injured 800
No. of people missing 800 (Approximately)
No. of houses 1000
collapsed

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 Response, Rescue and Relief operations
Rescue and relief operations was done through
Army Hospital
Collapsed bridges were reconstructed by army
engineers and debris were removed
Supply of essential items were made to the
affected areas
Rescue and relief operations were carried out
immediately after disaster

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 Disaster Management Act 2005

India is vulnerable to natural disasters and recurrent

disasters are floods, droughts, cyclones,
earthquakes and landslides.
25 states are considered as disaster prone
68% of Indian land is drought prone, 12% to flood
and 8% to cyclone.

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 Approach to Disaster Management
Till recently, the approach to disaster
management has been reactive and relief
centric
Nowadays – Shift has taken place at the national
level from the relief centric syndrome to
integrated approach with emphasis on
prevention, mitigation and preparedness.
These efforts are aimed to conserve
developmental gains and also minimize losses to
lives, livelihood and property.

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 Disaster Management Continuum

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 Disaster Management Act 2005

Aimed at preparedness, prevention and early

planning towards disaster
Three authorities - National Disaster Management
Authority, State Disaster Management Authority and
District Disaster Management Authority
There shall be no discrimination based on gender,
caste and community in providing compensation
and relief

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 Disaster Management Act 2005

Penalties for obstruction, false claims etc., and

ensures the establishment of Disaster Response fund
and Disaster Mitigation fund at central, state and
district level
Drought – Disaster management is looked after by
the Ministry of Agriculture
Act comprises of 79 sections and 11 chapters

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 National disaster management framework

28
 Chapter I Definition

 Section 2 of the Act defines ‘Disaster’ as a catastrophe,

mishap, calamity or grave occurrence in any area, arising
from either natural or man made causes, or by accident or
negligence which results in substantial loss of life or human
suffering, or damage to and destruction of property or
damage to or degradation of environment, and is of such
a nature or magnitude as to be beyond the coping
capacity of the community of the affected area.

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 Chapter I Definition
‘Disaster Management’ - continuous and integrated process of
planning, organizing, coordinating and implementing measures
which are necessary or expedient to
 prevent danger or threat of any disaster
 mitigation or reduce the risk or severity or consequences of any
disaster
 capacity-building and preparedness to deal with any disaster
 prompt response to any threatening disaster situation or disaster
 assessing the severity or magnitude of effects of any disaster
 evacuation, rescue and relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

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 Chapter II National Disaster
Management Authority
 The Act empowers the Central Government to appoint the National
Disaster Management Authority with the Prime Minister of India as
the Chairperson and such number of other members, not
exceeding nine
 The National Authority has the responsibility to lay down, approve
the policies, plans and guidelines for disaster management
prepared by various departments of Government of India to ensure
timely and effective response to disaster
 Details about the meetings, executive committee and plans

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 Chapter III State Disaster Management
Authorities
 The State Authority is to be headed by the Chief Minister
of the State as the Chairperson and such number of
other members, not exceeding nine
 The State Authority is supposed to lay down the State
disaster management policy, approve the State Plan in
accordance with the guidelines laid down by the
National Authority.
 Also specifies on meetings, state executive committee
and plans at state level

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 Chapter IV District Disaster
Management Authorities
 District Disaster Management Authority for every district
in the State with the Collector or District Collector or
Deputy Commissioner as the Chairperson and such
number of other members, not exceeding seven
 District planning, coordinating and implementing body
for disaster management and take all measures for the
purposes of disaster management in the district in
accordance with the guidelines laid down by the
National Authority and the State Authority.

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 Chapter V Measures by the Government and
International Agencies for Disaster Management
 Coordination with the United Nations agencies, International
organizations and governments of foreign countries for the
purposes of this Act
 Establish institutions for research, training and developmental
programmes in the field of disaster management
 Securing effective implementation of the provisions of this Act

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 Chapter VI - Local Authorities
Local authorities shall ensure that the officers
and employees are trained and resources are
readily available during disaster
Carry out relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction
activities in the affected areas and may take
such other measures as may be necessary for
the disaster management

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 Chapter VII - National Institute of
Disaster Management
 The institute functions within the broad policies and guidelines laid down by
the National Authority and is responsible for:
- Planning and promoting training and research in the area of disaster
management
- Documentation and development of national level information base
relating to disaster management policies
- Prevention mechanisms
- Mitigation measures

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 Chapter VIII - National Disaster
Response Force
 The general superintendence, direction and control of the
Force shall be vested and exercised by the National
Authority
 Command and supervision of the Force shall vest in an
officer to be appointed by the Central Government as the
Director General of the National Disaster Response Force

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 Chapter IX - Finance, Accounts and
Audits
 The Central Government is empowered to constitute a
fund to be called as the National Disaster Response fund
For meeting any threatening disaster situation or
disaster and there shall be credited thereto an
amount which Central Government may, after due
appropriation made by parliament by law in this
behalf provide any grants that may be made by any
person or institution for the purpose of disaster
management.

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 Chapter X -Offences and Penalties
 The Act imposes punishments to persons/companies for
contravening the provisions of this Act, 2005 such as
1. Obstructing or abandoning
2. Refusing to comply with any of the provisions of this Act
3. Making false claims, misappropriation of money or
materials or false warning, etc.,
 The punishment in such cases could be imprisonment or
fine or both.

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 Chapter XI-Miscellaneous
 The National Authority, the State Authority, or a District
Authority is empowered
1. To recommend the Government to give direction to
any authority or person in control of any audio or
audiovisual media or such other means of
communication as may be available to carry any
warning or advisories regarding any threatening disaster
situation or disaster, and the said means of
communication and media as designated shall comply
with such direction.

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 Questions

 NDMA act was passed in the year _______

 Who is the chair person of National Disaster
Management Authority?
 NDRF stands for __________
 Who is the chief of NDRF?

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