disaster management
perspective
Managing Disasters in India
T Nanda Kumar
isasters affect
almost every part of
the world. According
to a World Bank report
titled “natural hazards,
unnatural disasters,” floods and
storms are the most widespread
while droughts are prevalent more
often in Africa. Regions which
suffer from frequent droughts and
floods are also home to most of
the hungry in the world. Climate
change is expected to exacerbate
the situation. There is, therefore,
a need to recognize hazards and
vulnerability in a comprehensive
manner and take effective steps
for prevention, mitigation and
management.
avalanches, and landslides also
occur in some parts of India but the
impact depends on the magnitude
of the event and the vulnerability
of the location. Natural disasters
which occurred during 1980-2010
in India are given in Figure-I.
In the case of India, natural
disasters like floods, cyclones and
drought occur repeatedly in different
parts of the country. Many districts
of India are prone to multiple hazards
and face different disasters around
the year. Earthquake, hailstorms,
According to an estimate by
the World Bank direct losses from
natural disaster are upto 2 percent of
the India’s GDP. More importantly,
the impact of most of the disasters
is disproportionately high on the
poor.
D
With better
planning,
preparedness
awareness and
mitigation measures
we can significantly
reduce the impact
of disasters for our
people in the near
future
Developed countries which
have modern early warning
systems and effective mitigation
programmes are able to reduce the
impact of natural hazards whereas
countries with less preparedness
and inadequate mitigation efforts
suffer more from natural hazards.
In the case of India, the human and
economic losses from disasters are
high in comparison to many other
developing nations.
The author is Member, National Disaster Management Authority, Govt. of India.
YOJANA March 2012
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