Prepping for Perils: The India Way…

A growing population, expanding economy and climate change raise India’s vulnerability. But is it adequately ready to respond to disasters?

India is the most populous nation in the world and the danger of being branded as the country with the largest number of victims of disasters is knocking on its door. The World Risk Report 2023, released in September 2023, places India (WRI 41.52) at the 3rd place after the Philippines (WRI 46.56) and Indonesia (WRI 43.50). Increasing population and economic activities make more people vulnerable to disasters. This compels us to wonder if we are adequately prepared.

The Silkyara Tunnel (Uttarakhand) disaster has exposed our weaknesses. The imported machines and ideas failed, and 41 workers remained trapped for 16 days. They were finally rescued by the rat miners with improvised basic tools.

Three trains collided at Balasore in Odisha on June 2, 2023, killing 296 passengers and injuring more than 1200. It was the world’s deadliest rail accident after the 2004 Sri Lanka rail disaster. India, with the world’s fourth-largest railway network and increasing train speed, has many challenges on the disaster front. Floods and landslides killed at least 72 people in Himachal Pradesh in August. Many residents of the state capital Shimla stayed away from the city for weeks fearing landslides. Most of the hill towns in India may see a similar fate. The frequent flood in Assam, flood in the dry zones of Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat and flash flood in Sikkim also send ominous signals.

In accordance with the Section 44 of Disaster Management Act, 16 battalions of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been created by the central government. The NDRF battalions are located in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Delhi NCR.

The state governments are expected to set up the State Disaster Response Forces (SDRFs) under DM Act 2005. Few state governments have raised the SDRFs in full strength. Mostly, the SDRF are not properly trained and equipped.

Many states have placed the SDRFs under police, although policing and disaster management are quite different. Disaster management requires attitudinal changes, compassion, empathy and continuous training and rehearsals. Police, already overburdened, cannot take the additional burden of managing disasters.

The linkages between extreme natural events, adverse impact of climate change, huge migration due to economic and security situations, deep penetration of digital media, integrated global economy and conflicts are creating new challenges for disaster management in India.

Recently, the web series The Railwaymen and the film Mission Raniganj celebrated individual heroism during the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster and the 1989 Raniganj coal mine disaster. But disaster management needs to be a team effort, with government organisations, local communities and professional bodies being closely involved in it. Unfortunately, coordination, cohesion and team spirit often go missing during search and rescue operations.

The District Magistrate or Collector has been made the head of the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) under Section 25 (1) of DM Act 2005. An overburdened DC or DM is not able to devote time, energy and resources to disaster preparedness, mitigation and management tasks in his district. During state-level mock exercises, many districts fail to achieve the desired standards of preparedness.

As per Section 37(1)(a) of the DM Act 2005, every ministry or department must prepare a disaster management plan. Section 26 (d) of the act provides for adequate funds to be allotted to cover expenses for prevention, mitigation, capacity building and preparedness for disasters. Similar actions are expected from private organizations too. In reality, there are huge gaps in its implementation on the ground.

The very definition of disaster implies that managing it is beyond the coping capacity of the affected community. External assistance is required. India with its huge population could be the disaster manager for the whole world.

To get this status, we need to work hard and make many legal, institutional and attitudinal changes in government and society as a whole. Over-reliance on the government to manage each disaster is counterproductive.  It makes our society sitting ducks.

Poverty alleviation, filling gender gaps, better health care, adequate infrastructure, sustainable development and social harmony will make our population less vulnerable to disasters. Japan and Italy, facing a large number of disasters, have displayed that by lowering the vulnerability, disaster risks can be brought down.

Each disaster is unique. It needs unique solutions. A rigid bureaucratic approach to disaster management negates the role of merits and expertise. Handling it needs lots of experience, knowledge, exposure to different disasters and out-of-the-box thinking. It can be achieved through meritocracy only. India has got potential to be a global saviour. It just needs to create focused, professional, well-trained teams with indigenous search and rescue tools and equipment. It will be rewarding.

(The writer is a well-acclaimed national-level expert on disaster management. He has done a comparative study on disaster management in India, Japan, South Africa and the US for his PhD. He coordinated many search and rescue operations across India.)

Deepak Pandey.