Disaster Management in India

The Disaster Management Act, 2005 (DM Act) defines a disaster as a catastrophe, mishap, calamity or grave occurrence from natural or manmade causes, which is beyond the coping capacity of the affected community. Major types of natural disasters include earthquakes, droughts, floods, cyclones and tsunamis while manmade disasters include industrial, chemical and nuclear disasters. Disaster management (DM), or disaster risk management, is concerned with the formulation and implementation of policies and practices to reduce risks associated with disasters. The key components of disaster management are: (i) reducing existing levels of vulnerability to disasters, (ii) prevention, mitigation, (iii) appropriate response, and (iv) rehabilitation and reconstruction. the aftermath of the disaster. In this context, this note explains the legislative and institutional framework for disaster management in India and highlights key recommendations to improve disaster management mechanisms in the country.

Legislative and institutional framework

Evolution of disaster management in India The 1990s were declared by the United Nations as the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction. Following the UN Declaration, a permanent disaster management cell was established under the Ministry of Agriculture. In 1999, a High Powered Committee was created to review the existing mechanisms for disaster preparedness and mitigation and recommend measures to strengthen these mechanisms at the national, state and district levels. The Committee submitted its report in 2002, which formed the basis for the DM Act, which was enacted in 2005. Prior to the DM Act, the Cabinet was empowered to set up a committee in the aftermath of a disaster and the Secretary of Agriculture was responsible for effective implementation of the committees recommendations. The Department of Agriculture and Cooperation (DAC) was the nodal agency for disaster management and the Relief Commissioner, of the DAC was the nodal officer. In 2002, the disaster management division of Ministry of Agriculture was shifted to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The DM Act specifies the responsibilities of the central, state and district governments in disaster management. These are detailed below. Current institutional arrangement National Disaster Management Act, 2005: The DM Act provides for disaster management institutions at the national, state and district levels and represents a shift in emphasis from relief to preparedness, prevention and mitigation. Major provisions include establishing disaster management authorities and formulating disaster management plans at the national, state and district level, and formulating a National Policy for Disaster Management. The DM Act provides for the establishment of a National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) headed by the Prime Minister, State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs) headed by Chief Ministers, and District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs) headed by district collectors/magistrates.
August 6, 2013

Flash floods in Uttarakhand

Between June 14 and 17, 2013, multi day cloudburst, associated with an early monsoon in north India, led to torrential floods and landslides in the state of Uttarakhand. Varying estimates of casualties and damages have been made. The following table outlines the extent of damages reported by the state government of Uttarakhand to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
Table 1: Extent of damage reported in Uttarakhand Number of districts affected 13 Number of villages affected 1603 Number of human lives lost 580 Number of bodies recovered 249 Number of injured 4473 Number of missing 5526 Livestock lost 9470 Cattle sheds damaged 649 Pilgrims stranded All requiring assistance have been evacuated Number of persons 1,08,653 evacuated to safer places
Source: Flood Situation Report 2013, Disaster Management Division, Ministry of Home Affairs, July 27, 2013. http://ndmindia.nic.in/flood-2013/floodsJuly-2013.htm; PRS. Note: The MHA mentions that figures are provisional and gathered from several sources. They are likely to change as more information is gathered.

Unofficial estimates, made by non governmental agencies are much higher. It is argued that close to 70,000 pilgrims were stranded in the region, when the flash floods and landslides first began, and the number of fatalities is over 5000.i Infrastructure, agricultural land and houses have been damaged in the affected areas; and road access and electricity have been unavailable for an extended period. However, it has been difficult to estimate the exact amount of damage to property and infrastructure in
Joyita Ghose joyita@prsindia.org

PRS Legislative Research Institute for Policy Research Studies 3rd Floor, Gandharva Mahavidyalaya 212, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg New Delhi 110002 Tel: (011) 43434035-36 www.prsindia.org


Figure 1 outlines the institutional structure for disaster management under the DM Act at the national, state and district level. Figure 1: Institutional framework under the DM Act
Crisis Management Group State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) Reviews contingency plans formulated by the central ministries/departments. State bodies Like the NDMA, the SDMA is responsible for laying down the policies for disaster management in the state, formulating a state plan for disaster management and laying down guidelines for disaster management. Like the NEC, the SEC assists the SDMA in the implementation its policies and guidelines through coordinating and monitoring the implementation of the national policy, national plan and state plan. Consists of members with practical expertise on disaster management to make recommendations on the management of disasters. District bodies Acts as the planning, coordinating and implementing body for disaster management at the district level. Headed by the District Collector, it is the apex body for disaster management at the district level.

State Executive Committee

State Advisory Committee Source: Report No. 5 of 2013 (Ministry of Home Affairs) Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India of Disaster Preparedness in India; PRS

National Policy on Disaster Management, 2009: The Policy aims at developing an integrated, holistic, multi-disaster oriented and technology driven strategy for disaster management involving prevention, mitigation, preparedness and response. It outlines the institutional, financial and technolegal arrangements relating to disaster management and details response, relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction and recovery mechanisms. Other structures have been created for disaster management at the national, state and district level. These are detailed in Table 1 below. Table 1: Disaster Management bodies at the central, state and district levels
Designated Authority Central bodies National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Functions include (i) formulating a national policy on disaster management (ii) approve a national plan for disaster management, (iii) formulate guidelines to be followed by central ministries, (iv) coordinate the enforcement and implementation of the policy and plan for disaster management and, (v) take any other measures. Assists the NDMA to coordinate disaster management efforts, preparing a national plan for disaster management and monitoring the implementation of the disaster management guidelines formulated by the NDMA. Responsible for developing training modules and conducting research and documentation related to disaster management. A specialist response force to tackle all types of disaster, including nuclear, biological and chemical disasters. Includes cabinet secretary and secretaries of other departments that are in charge of dealing with crises and giving directions to the Crisis Management Group. Functions

District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) District Advisory Committee Source: PRS.

Figure 2 outlines the current disaster response mechanism in India. It shows that the National Crisis Management Committee is the apex decision making body in the aftermath of a disaster while the Crisis Management Group (CMG)/Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the NDMA are responsible for the deployment of the National Disaster Response Force. The CMG and MHA also coordinate with the state governments and deploy the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF). The nodal agency in the state government provides support to the district administration which is responsible for the on site management of the disaster. Figure 2: Disaster response mechanism in India

Warning from state and nodal agencies National Crisis Management Committee

Control Room

CMG/MHA coordinates with State Governments

NDMA

National Executive Committee (NEC)

Nodal Disaster Management & Relief Department (State Fire services, SDRF, State Police and other departments. Provides support to district adminstration.

Deploying of CAPF's

Deploying NDRF

District Administration is responsible for on-scene Affected

National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) National Crisis Management Committee

Source: Disaster Preparedness in India, Comptroller and Auditor General of India, April 23, 2013; PRS. Note: CAPF: Central Armed Police Forces


Funding The MHA is the nodal ministry for providing financial assistance in the aftermath of any disaster. The DM Act constituted the following funds related to disaster management: National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and National Disaster Mitigation Fund. National Disaster Response Fund and State Disaster Response Fund: Based on the recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission, the schemes of the NDRF and SDRF were made operational for a period of five years from 2010 to 2015. The funds from both are to be used only to provide immediate relief to people affected by cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood, tsunami, hailstorm, landslide, avalanche, cloud burst and pest attack. These funds are not for disaster preparedness, mitigation and restoration work, which must be met from the plan funds of the state. The National Calamity Contingency Fund was merged with the NDRF and the Calamity Relief Fund was merged with the SDRF. The 13th Finance Commission recommended the annual contribution to the SDRF, and mentioned that the central government was to contribute 75% of total yearly allocation to general category states and 90% of total yearly allocation to special category states in the form of non plan grant. The balance was to be contributed by state governments. Natural calamities that require expenditure in excess of the SDRF receive additional funding from the NDRF. National Disaster Mitigation Fund and State Disaster Mitigation Fund: These two funds were to be created at the national and state levels respectively to fund mitigation efforts. The NDMF was to be placed at the disposal of NDMA. However, the NDMF is not operational as yet and only a few states have made their SDRFs operational. Therefore, at present, mitigation efforts are financed through state plans. governments. None of the major projects undertaken by the NDMA have been completed. The National Disaster Mitigation Fund has not yet been established. Communication systems for DM are not developed. Critical equipments have not been procured and the satellite based communication network has not been developed. The effectiveness of the National Disaster Response Force has been hampered because of shortage of trained manpower and absence of appropriate training facilities, infrastructure and equipment. The Standard Operating Procedures for deployment of the NDRF have not been finalised. On the basis of its findings, the CAG made the following recommendations: The NEC and MHA should ensure that a comprehensive national plan for disaster management is formulated. The NDMA should ensure that its guidelines are implemented. Roles and responsibilities of the MHA, NEC and NDMA should be clearly outlined. The MHA should strengthen its monitoring mechanism. Disaster Mitigation funds should be established at the national, state and district levels. The Department of Space must ensure that the National Database for Emergency Management is operationalised at the earliest. The Ministry of Water Resources must prepare emergency action plans for states, covering major dams

Key findings and recommendations of the CAG

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) presented its report on disaster preparedness in India in April, 2013. It mentions that the earlier institutional framework and the new institutional framework co-exist, as the latter is still in the early stages of being implemented.ii The CAG report made the following observations: A national plan for disaster management has not been formulated till date. There are no provisions to make guidelines issued by the NDMA binding on state

Uttarakhand: Death toll may go past 10,000, says assembly speaker, Indian Express, June 29, 2013. Uttarakhand toll may still be in thousands, over 70,000 still missing Times of India, June 20, 2013. ii Disaster Preparedness in India, Comptroller and Auditor General of India, April 23, 2013; http://saiindia.gov.in/english/home/Our_Products/Audit_Report/Government _Wise/union_audit/recent_reports/union_performance/2013/Civil/Report_5/ Report_5.html. DISCLAIMER: This document is being furnished to you for your information. You may choose to reproduce or redistribute this report for non-commercial purposes in part or in full to any other person with due acknowledgement of PRS Legislative Research (PRS). The opinions expressed herein are entirely those of the author(s). PRS makes every effort to use reliable and comprehensive information, but PRS does not represent that the contents of the report are accurate or complete. PRS is an independent, not-for-profit group. This document has been prepared without regard to the objectives or opinions of those who may receive it.