Global economic losses from
natural disasters rose from an annual average of about US $50 billion in
the 1980s to approximately $200 billion each year in the 2000s.
Failure of Governments
Disaster can be natural or man-
made. However, the devastation shows the collective failure of
governments. The investment in building
a climate resilient is low, as there is less attention in this issue except few
countries.
There are potentially
vulnerable places, and the hazards are ignored, safety norms are not
followed while building factories and infrastructure facilities have been
constructed in areas that are potentially vulnerable to natural hazards like
floods.
After natural disasters like
Kerala flood again there were a lot of questions and criticism directed at
preparedness practices. Often disaster management plans exist on paper, but
implementation remains a challenge.
The government has always
relief – centric approach which causes a huge dissatisfaction among people,
costs higher in terms of economics and shows the incapability’s and lethargic
approach of government.
The Proactive Approach – The need of the
hour
There has to be a better
understanding of the region and natural hazard related to that area in advance,
not only in papers.
There has to be ecological
balanced approach while creating dams etc as flood through dams caused more
harm. Therefore, the height of dams should be kept into concern while making it
as well as, underground dams can be better using various canals.
Early warning is vital. In Kerala, there was no timely forecast from
national weather services. The State needs a reliable flood forecasting
systems.
There needs to be tougher
implementation of logging and mining regulations in fragile ecologies.
There should be increase in
forest cover as deforestation has worsened the effects of Kerala’s floods and
mudslides. .
There is an urgent need of different
stakeholders to come together for mapping risks, vulnerabilities, and
resources, and engage in regular preparedness actions like drills and capacity
building. They need to develop and update emergency plans, as well as check the
availability of resources at the local level and act upon early warning
intimations.
The Role of Civil Society
While the government works
towards strengthening systems and mechanisms for preparedness and response,
civil society has a major role to play, at the community level, for disaster
preparedness.
There is a need for investing
in disaster preparedness and mitigation across the country, irrespective of
whether any state has been hit by a disaster or not.
India needs to adopt a
collaborative approach, where the roles of the government, corporations,
academia, civil societies and communities are recognised,
The Disaster Recovery Framework
Disaster recovery frameworks
must be robust in terms of pre- and post-disaster initiatives requiring
cross-sector collaborations between communities, local, state and central
governments, private sectors, religious and social non-governmental
organisations.
An additional factor that must
be added diligently to disaster recovery is the integration of the health
sector into pre- and post-recovery strategies and decisions.
Any policies and strategies to
enhance India’s pre- and post-disaster resilience must also consider natural
and built environments and socioeconomic systems.
All implementations of these
strategies must leverage the pre-disaster planning to drive rapid post-disaster
return to healthy, resilient and sustainable communities.
A shared vision of healthier,
more resilient and sustainable communities must also identify the knowledge,
data and research needs for assessment of hazard anticipation, risk,
vulnerability, and resilience.
Models, metrics and indicators
for measuring progress towards resilience must drive an iterative learning
process to better anticipate and manage disasters at short, intermediate, and
long-terms to ensure resilient, healthy and sustainable communities with
measurable reductions in vulnerability to disasters.
The Community Engagement
National disaster recovery
framework needs to facilitate community engagement at all levels with proper
information and training that is simple and accessible to all. Such a framework
must leverage existing social networks and enhance the sense of community
before, during and after disasters.
The Culture of Resilience
A culture of resilience needs
to be inculcated across all sectors so that the roles and responsibilities of
governmental and non-governmental organisations and the public are clearly
defined with codes, standards and guidelines explicitly established, risk-based
insurance pricing in place along with a national resource of disaster-related
data to constantly improve disaster recovery and enhance resilience.
