DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN INDIA

Natural disasters or human-made disasters can happen anytime. They interrupt the normal functioning of the environment and society. To bring it under immediate control, there is a need for emergency intervention to bring things under management. The effects of the disasters must be put to ease to control the situation and the properties from getting destroyed. Disaster management is a multi-faceted program which involves saving of lives of people, animals and properties during the occurrence of a natural disaster or a disaster caused due to manmade activities. It deals with different kinds of disasters like drought, earthquakes, floods, hurricanes and landslides.
In India, the Disaster Management Act, 2005 is the legislation which provides a framework for disaster management and mitigation. The Act calls for the establishment of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), which is the apex statutory body for disaster management in India with the Prime Minister of India as the Chairperson. The NDMA is responsible for "laying down the policies, plans and guidelines for disaster management" and to ensure "timely and effective response to disaster". Under section 6 of the Act it is responsible for laying "down guidelines to be followed by the State Authorities in drawing up the State Plans".
HISTORY:
In recognition of the importance of Disaster Management as a national priority, the Government of India set up a High-Powered Committee (HPC) in August 1999 and a National Committee after the Gujarat earthquake (2001), for making recommendations on the preparation of Disaster Management plans and suggesting effective mitigation mechanisms. The Tenth Five-Year Plan document also had, for the first time, a detailed chapter on Disaster Management. The Twelfth Finance Commission was also mandated to review the financial arrangements for Disaster Management. Therefore, on 23 December 2005, the Government of India enacted the Disaster Management Act.
SUCCESS IN DISASTER MANAGEMENT:
NDMA runs intensive earthquake and extreme weather events awareness campaigns and provides guidelines regarding natural and man-made disasters. It has also released Guidelines on School Safety, Hospital Safety and Minimum Standards for Shelter, Food, Water, Sanitation and Medical Cover in Relief Camps. The Authority worked closely with the States in mitigating the impact of Heat Wave and the number of casualties came down drastically.
In the recent times, India has faced a series of Cyclones like Fani, Visarga, Amphan, etc. and other Calamities. The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Deduction (UNISDR) and other organizations have hailed Government and volunteer efforts that have ensured the levels of destruction to keep minimum. There has been significant reduction in mortality rate from the loss of over 10000 lives in 1999 during Super Cyclone in Odisha to a mortality of 16 in 2019 during cyclone Fani.
SHORTCOMINGS AND CHALLENGES:
A series of questions were raised about the role of NDMA during Uttarakhand Flooding in 2013, where it failed to timely inform people about the flash floods and landslides. The post disaster relief response had been equally poor. Experts blamed the poor planning of NDMA that lead to unfinished projects for flood and landslide mitigation. A CAG report noted that there were delays in completion of projects under the flood management programmes. It noted the projects were not taken up in an integrated manner and blamed NDMA for institutional failures for poor flood management. Devastations during Kerala Floods in 2018 and Chennai Floods in 2015 were eye-opening for the institutions regarding preparedness for the disaster situation. Also, the NDRF personnel lack sufficient training, equipment, facilities and residential accommodation to tackle the crisis situation properly.
Thus, even though Disaster Management in India has been improved as compared to the previous years and instances, with the passing time, it needs to be more robust and prepared. Given the rapid changes in climate and nature, the time ahead requires more serious attention and better preparedness for preventing as well as mitigating disaster, so that human life in World’s 2nd most populated country gets saved.
                                                                    PUSHPAM SINGH

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE DOCTRINE OF SEPARATION OF POWER

Image
                           Based on the principle of trias politica, the Doctrine of Separation of Power has been in existence in India since the days of “Magna Carta”. The Doctrine of Separation of Power envisages a division of powers in a tripartite system. The Indian system is formulated on three main organs; the legislative organ of the state makes laws, the executive forces them and the judiciary applies them to any cases arising out of the breach of those laws. The concept of Separation of Power as elucidated by Wade and Philips meant that no same individual should be a part of more than one out of the three organs of the government. It was further interpreted that one organ of the Government ought not to control or interfere with the activity of another organ, for example, the Judiciary ought to be free of the Executive and that one organ of the Government ought not to exercise the functions of another, for example, the Ministers cannot have administrative forces. Even though t
Read more

DELAYED JUSTICE IN DEATH PENALTY

Image
Justice is rightly called the shield of innocence and guardian of civil rights, as Martin Luther King said, “injustice anywhere is threat to justice everywhere”.  Justice basically means being just, impartial, fair and right. Justice to the accused/convict is as important as justice to the victim. Capital punishment has been in talk in India and other countries as well. In 1982, in the Bachan Singh Vs State of Punjab, the Supreme Court propounded the “rarest of rare” doctrine and since then, life sentence is the rule and the death sentence the exception. Capital Punishment is awarded in cases related to rape, murder, terrorism and atrocity. In Law Commission of India’s report on Death Penalty in 2015, it was stated that there were 12 crimes under IPC and 22 other laws which prescribed death penalty. In 2019, the NDA government amended the POCSO Act in order to grant death penalty to those who indulge in aggravated sexual assault against children.  William Edward Gladstone,
Read more

PROPERTY DIVISION IN MUSLIM LAW

Image
INTRODUCTION Succession is both a legal and a practical requirement. Every individual will be required to renounce the world once, after which all of their legal rights and responsibilities will be dissolved and transferred to someone else. In India, succession is governed by religiously based personal laws. As a result, the rule of succession is influenced by one's faith on religion. “THE MUSLIM PERSONAL LAW (SHARIAT) APPLICATION ACT, 1937”, deals with intestate succession, the special property of women, inheritance, and the transfer of property under a gift or any other provision that is a subject of personal law among Muslims. DIVISION In Muslim law, the two forms of succession are also recognised. In the event that a man leaves a valid will, testamentary succession occurs, and the property is divided according to the will. When a person dies without leaving a will, intestate succession takes place. Since the joint family system is not recognised, the heirs are limited to t
Read more