Sharing Responsibility †Role of local and state bodies: Disaster Management Essay

‘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 — The term ‘DISASTER’ has been taken from a French word ‘Desastre’ (French ‘des’ means bad and ‘astre’ means star) meaning bad evil star. A disaster whether natural or human induced, is an event which results in widespread human loss. It is accompanied by loss of livelihood and property causing devastating impact on socio-economical conditions. India is one of the most vulnerable developing countries to sufer from various disasters like-flood, drought, cyclone, landslide, earthquake, forestfire, volcanic erruptions, roits, terrorist attacks etc. Natural disasters- It is an event that is caused by a natural hazard and leads to human, material, economical and environmental losses. They are beyond the control of human beings. Nature provides us with all the resources, but it can be sometimes cruel also. Some examples of natural disasters are- the 2001 earthquake in Bhuj, Gujarat, the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the 2008 earthquake in China, the 2007 cyclone in Myanmar. Eg. Floods, Drought, Earthquake, Volcano, Cyclones, Landslides, Avalanches etc. Human-Induced Disasters- Man made disasters are caused by human activities such as nuclear explosion, chemical & biological weapons, industrial pollution, war, accidents etc.Some serious destructions caused by humans, which affects the human beings and the socio-economic conditions of that area. For example- the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy, train derailments, serial blasts in Mumbai in 2008 (26/11) etc. Eg, Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Disasters. Disaster Management It is the discipline of dealing with and avoiding risks. In general it is the continuous process by which all individuals, groups and communities manage hazards in an effort to avoid or minimize the impact of the disasters resulting from the hazards. It is almost impossible to fully control the damage caused by the disaster, but it is possible to minimize to some extent by these ways- (1) By early warning given by MET. department through radio, TV. (2) The police control room , fire control officers , the near by RED-cross office and other rescue teams should be informed. (3) Spread awareness about disasters and tips to handle them. (4) Space technology plays a very important role in efficient mitigation of disasters. (5) Major loss of life and property can be avoided with carefull planning along with and effective warning and evacuation procedure. (6)We should cooperate with the rescue teams. It is our moral and social duty that we should help in arranging relief camps for those who have suffered. Role Of Local People In Managing Disasters- 1. Spread awareness about disasters 2. Organise mock camps in their holidays in neighbouring villages to train people to cope up with disasters 3. The basic role of students is spreading ‘AWARENESS’ of what to do during and after disasters. This would lessen the death toll, panicking, paranoid and uncontrollable people running about 4. Be a part of emergency rescue team 5. A big aspect of disaster management is preparedness 6. Students can also provide first aod which would help authorities in saving lives 7. Deforestation should be checked 8. Buildings should not be built on steep slopes and every construction should follow the Architechtural Parameters. INTRODUCTION: India has been traditionally vulnerable to natural disasters on account of its unique geo-climatic conditions. Floods, droughts, cyclones, earthquakes and landslides have been recurrent phenomena. At the global level, there has been considerable concern over natural disasters. Evenas substantial scientific and material progress is made, the loss of lives and property due to disasters has not decreased. Over the past couple of years, the Government of India has brought about a paradigm shift in the approach to disaster management. The new approach proceeds from the conviction that development cannot be sustainable unless disaster mitigation is built into the development process. This project discusses the roles that government andvarious agencies that play an important role in managing disasters. We too as citizens of India can play a major role. We can also be a volunteer and also a skilled personnel and save lives of our near and dear country men/women in any disaster scenario. At the time of disaster various agencies both government and non – government organizations playa crucial role in preparing the society. Home Guards, Civil Defense, Volunteers of national Service Scheme, NehruYuva Kendra Sangathan too play a major role at the time of crisis. This chapter tries to understand the functions and role of these agencies in disaster management, who make the society a better place to lives. http://www.annauniv.edu/nss/aboutnss.htm (impo) http://www.etu.org.za/toolbox/docs/government/disaster.html (impo) http://www.indiastudychannel.com/resources/67723-SHARING-RESPONSIBILITY-ROLE-OF-LOCAL-AND-STATE.aspx (impo) http://disaster.ifas.ufl.edu/PDFS/CHAP03/D03-07.PDF http://orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/jan2004/englishpdf/chapter15.pdf http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_Human_Duties_and_Responsibilities http://www.nagalandhgcd.nic.in/CD%20disaster%20mngt.html (civil defence in disaster management) http://www.nagalandhgcd.nic.in/index.html ( Nagaland Home Gaurds and Civil Defence Organisation) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Guard_(India)#Functions ( function of Home Guard ) http://www.un.org.in/_layouts/CMS/undmt.aspx ( UN Disaster Management Team ) http://www.psgtech.edu/ncc/02NccInfo.html (NCC – Impo) INDIAN CIVIL DEFENCE— Home Guard ( Delhi Home guard and civil defence) National Service Scheme UN DISASTER MANAGEMENT TEAM LOGO INDIAN ARMED FORCES: The Armed Forces have six main tasks; To assert the territorial integrity of India. To defend the country if attacked by a foreign nation. To send own amphibious warfare equipment to take the battle to enemy shores. To follow the Cold Start doctrine, meaning that the Indian Armed Forces are able to quickly mobilize and take offensive actions without crossing the enemy’s nuclear-use threshold. However, officially, India denies having a cold start strategy – quoting the Indian Army chief: â€Å"There is nothing called ‘Cold Start’. As part of our overall strategy we have a number of contingencies and options, depending on what the aggressor does. In the recent years, we have been improving our systems with respect to mobilization, but our basic military posture is defensive.† To support the civil community in case of disasters (e.g. flooding). To participate in United Nations peacekeeping operations in consonance with India’s commitment to the United Nations Charter. The code of conduct of the Indian military is detailed in a semi-official book called â€Å"Customs and Etiquette in the Services†, written by retired Major General Ravi Arora, which details how Indian personnel are expected to conduct themselves generally. Arora is an executive editor of the Indian Military Review. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Armed_Forces#Current (Details on the above info. And pictures of president of republic of India, Headquarters of ministry of defense etc.) NCC – India It is the Indian military cadet corps with its Headquarters at New Delhi. It is open to school and college students on voluntary basis. National Cadet Corps is a Tri-Services Organization, comprising the Army, Navy and Air Force, engaged in grooming the youth of the country into disciplined and patriotic citizens. The National Cadet Corps in India is a voluntary organization which recruits cadets from high schools, colleges and Universities all over India. The Cadets are given basic military training in small arms and parades. The officers and cadets have no liability for active military service once they complete their course but are given preference over normal candidates during selections based on the achievements in the corps. NCC HISTORY – The NCC in India was formed with the National Cadet Corps Act of 1948. It was raised on 15 July 1948 The National Cadet Corps can be considered as a successor of the University Officers Training Corps (UOTC) which was established by the British in 1942. During World War II, the UOTC never came up to the expectations set by the British. This led to the idea that some better schemes should be formed, which could train more young men in a better way, even during peace times. A committee headed by Pandit H.N. Kunzru recommended a cadet organization to be established in schools and colleges at a national level. The National Cadet Corps Act was accepted by the Governor General and on 15 July 1948 the National Cadet Corps came into existence. MOTTO OF NCC Unity and Discipline (Ekta aur Anushasan) AIMS OF NCC – 1. To develop qualities of character, courage, comradeship, discipline, leadership, secular outlook, spirit of adventure and sportsmanship and the ideals of selfless service among the youth to make them useful citizen. 2. To create a human resource of organized trained and motivated youth to provide leadership in all walks of life including the Armed Forces and be always available for the service of the nation. HOW ARE DISASTERS MANAGED AT NATIONAL LEVEL? http://ndmindia.nic.in/DM-Booklet-080211.pdf (institutional mechanisms) HOW ARE DISASTERS MANAGED AT STATE LEVEL: 1. INTRODUCTION The state Disaster Management Action Plan (DMAP) has been prepared for its operationalisation by various departments and agencies of the Government of Maharashtra and other Non-Governmental Agencies expected to participate in disaster management. This plan provides for institutional arrangements, roles and responsibilities of the various agencies, interlinks in disaster management and the scope of their activities. An elaborate inventory of resources has also been formalized. The purpose of this plan is to evolve a system to  · assess the status of existing resources and facilities available with the various departments and agencies involved in disaster management in the state;  · assess their adequacies in dealing with a disaster;  · identify the requirements for institutional strengthening, technological support, upgradation of information systems and data management for improving the quality of administrative response to disasters at the state level;  · make the state DMAP an effective response mechanism as well as a policy and planning tool. The state DMAP addresses the state’s response to demands from the district administration and in extraordinary emergency situations at multi-district levels. It is associated with disasters like road accidents, major fires, earthquakes, floods, cyclones, epidemics and off-site industrial accidents. The present plan is a multi-disaster response plan for the disasters which outlines the institutional framework required for managing such situations. The state DMAP specifically focuses on the role of various governmental departments and agencies like the Emergency Operations Centre in case of any of the above mentioned disasters. This plan concentrates primarily on the response strategy.