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DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Prof. J M OVASDI

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What is a Disaster• A serious disruption of the functioning of a

society, causing widespread human, material, or environmental losses which exceed the ability of the affected society to cope using its own resources.

• A disaster is the product of a hazard such as earthquake, flood or windstorm coinciding with a vulnerable situation which might include communities, cities, villages

• Two main components -- Hazard and Vulnerability

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Distinction between Hazard & Disaster• A hazard is a natural or man-made event, while

the disaster is its consequence.• The term disaster usually refers to the natural event –

earthquake, floods in combination with its damaging effects –loss of life /property

• Hazard refers to the natural event, and vulnerability to the susceptibility of a population or system to the effects of the hazard.

• The probability that a particular system or population will be affected by the hazards is known as “RISK”

• Risk = Vulnerability x Hazard

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Distinction between Hazard & Disaster…• There is no such thing as natural disaster – there are

natural hazards• Disaster is the large scale effect of the hazard on a

community or environment• The impact of disaster is determined by the extent

of a community’s capacity to cope, that is the extent of a community’s vulnerability to the hazard –

• Disaster is the whole range of human dimension ----economic, social, cultural, institutional, political lives

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Disaster • The term ‘disaster’ is of French origin – combination of

two words ‘des’ meaning bad or evil and ‘astre’ meaning star. The combined meaning is “Bad or Evil Star”.

• People all over the world have been considering natural calamities as ‘God’s punishment’.

• Thus disaster may be defined as an event, concentrated in time and space, which threatens a society or a relatively self-sufficient sub-division of a society with major unwanted consequences as result of the collapse of precautions which had hitherto been culturally accepted as inadequate.

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Types of Disasters

1. Natural Disasters (i) Wind-related: Storm, cyclone, tornado, hurricane, tidal waves(ii) Water-related: floods, cloud burst, flash floods, excessive rains,

drought, communicable diseases etc.(iii) Earth-related: earthquakes, tsunamis, avalanches, landslides,

volcanic eruptions2. Man-made Disasters(iv) Wars, battles, hostile enemy actions(v) Arson, sabotage, internal disturbances, riots(vi) Accidents of vehicles, trains, aircraft, ships, forest and urban

fires etc.(vii) Ethnic conflicts, terrorism etc.(viii) Biological disasters: epidemics, pest attacks, food poisoning

etc.

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Impact of Disasters

1. People – loss of life in large numbers2. Property --Damage, destruction of property3. Infrastructure, Services --Damage, destruction of

infrastructure, public service system4. Environment -- Damage, destruction of environment5. Crops -- Damage, destruction of crops6. Productivity -- Disruption, loss of production7. Economy -- Loss to national, local economies8. Life-style --Disruption, loss of community or lifestyle9. Social & Psychological -- Sociological and

psychological consequences

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Overview of Natural Disasters in India• Coastal States, particularly on the East coast

and Gujarat are vulnerable to cyclones• 4 crore hectare landmass is vulnerable to

floods• 68 % of net sown area is vulnerable to

droughts• 55 % of total area is in seismic zones III-V,

hence vulnerable to earthquakes• Sub-Himalayan sector and western ghats are

vulnerable to landslides

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Overview of Man-Made DisastersInclude:

• Structural collapses – buildings, mines, bridges• Road, rail, air accidents, fires, deaths due to severe heat or cold• Poor, old, women and children are more vulnerable to all kinds of

natural or man-made disasters• Communal riots – Babri Masjid demolition was not a one time

disaster. It is still having its effects. The event is being used for militant activities

• Naxal activities due to oppressions of the tribal population• Hooch, food poisoning, adulteration of drugs and food items are

very common• Poor implementation of safety norms in the factories• Poor civic sense of the citizens at large….

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Environmental Concerns• Nature is an abundant resource but indiscriminate and rampant

exploitation creates threats of destruction.• Balance in nature –between man, animal and resources must be

maintained.• Oil spills, forest fires or nuclear leaks can cause widespread damage

to the environment• Global warming and Extreme Climate – melting of Himalayan glaciers• Agro-forestry – deforestation to meet the needs of increasing

population• Rapid urbanization increasing population density increasing

vulnerability and excessive strain on natural resources, particularly water

• Air and water pollution due to increasing industrialization as well as irresponsible discharge of pollutants

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Development VS. Environment

• Development activities compound effects of natural calamities

• Industries close to habitation and without proper treatment of contamination affluence has increased health hazards through water, air, noise pollution

• Large scale urbanization is beyond the nature’s bearing capacity – excessive use of natural resources, particularly water- as in Jaipur

• Flooding of Mumbai due to water logging

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Development VS. Environment…• Deforestation to meet development needs have

increased the vulnerability of the hill people – reduced rain fall, increased land-slides, and floods in the plains

• Destruction of mangroves and coral reefs has increased the vulnerability of coastal areas

• Commercialization of coastal areas, particularly for tourism, has increased disaster potential as witnessed during Tsunami in December 2004 and again in March 2011 in Japan.

• With the increase in vehicular traffic, accidents have become the top cause of human casualties.

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Ganga Maili• We have become so stupid in our use of natural

resources that we are using the Holy Ganga to carry the whole lot of municipal waste of all the towns and cities located on its banks. The factories and tanneries located on its banks are discharging their chemical waste directly into it.

• We have Ganga Action Plan to clean it, but the net result is disappointing.

• Same is the story of all the water-bodies of the country

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Need for Action• The quality of life of an individual is determined largely by

socio-economic and the physical environment• How to minimize the vulnerability of the community• Formerly city people, without individual motorized transport

were happy to live in close-knit neighborhood, congested colonies – Jaipur with walls around it.

• Then came slums, and suburban areas and the industries close to the city. Number of vehicles has increased sharply since 1995.

• Famous wide roads of Jaipur have become death-traps• Metro is planned to reduce the use of private vehicles and

thus to take care of the increasing vulnerability of the citizens.

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Post-modernistic Approach to Urbanization• In the post-modernistic approach to urban

development “pluralistic” and “organic” strategies are being applied

• New Urban development is a “collage” of highly differentiated spaces and attention is given to “other worlds” and “other voices”

• In simple words in the 21st century the new development has the following features:

• Diversity in the landscape, local context, renewal and regeneration and coping with conditions – vastu purusha mandala – think of colonies as living organisms that need breathing and growth facilities.

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Differences in Approach to PlanningMODERNIST POST -MODERNIST

Concepts of the City

The city as an object; as mass housing

The city as landscape, as an expression of social diversity

Themes in Urban Design

Continued emphasis on lower densities and sunlight; functional zoning; mixed flats and housing

More diversity, more emphasis on local context, mixed land uses

Themes in Strategic Planning

Redevelopment of slums; controlled expansion through suburbs, new town and greenbelts

Renewal and regeneration, containment

Decision Making Style

Comprehensive, either blueprint, “unitary” (1940’s-1960) or “adaptive”

Piecemeal, “coping with conditions”

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Development vs Environment

• Disasters and development are interrelated, both in a positive and negative ways

• Rational choices in developmental planning can reduce the risk of negative effects.

• Disaster cycle is development – crisis –disaster – relief – recovery – development.

• Risk management cycle is more appropriate.• Sustainable development that meets the needs

of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

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Disaster-- Development

Economic Development Social DevelopmentDisaster limits development

•Destruction of fixed assets •Damage to transport system, communication, infrastructure,• Erosion of livelihood

•Destruction of health or education infrastructure and personnel.•Death, migration, of key social actors leading to an erosion of social capital

Development causes –disaster risk

Unstable development practices that create wealth for some at the expense of unsafe working and living conditions of others or degrade the environment

•Development path generating cultural norms that promote social isolation or political exclusion

Development reduces disaster risk

Access to adequate drinking water, food, waste management and a secure dwelling increases people’s resilience. Trade and technology can reduce poverty. Investing in financial mechanism and social security can cushion against vulnerability.

•Building community cohesion, •Recognizing excluded individuals or social groups,•Providing opportunities for greater involvement in decision-making, •Enhanced educational and health capacity increases resilience.

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Global Warming & Climate Change

• Global warming and climate change is a matter of great concern that is likely to have far reaching changes in the human existence, affecting all fauna and flora.

• The speed of glacier melting in India and elsewhere is going to flood the island nations and coastal areas all over the world

• Large scale deforestation will also affect the climate on large scale

• Urbanization is leading to heavy concentration of population in limited areas increasing vulnerability of communities

• Urbanization is a sign of development but it is a strain on the natural resources, like water that is already seriously affecting the lives of urban population.

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Disaster Management Cycle• The concept of Disaster Management Cycle has been

developed since Yokohama Conference (1994).• Before this disaster management was perceived as a

short-term relief undertaking, which lasted till some time after the disaster.

• Other purposive activities undertaken in the pre or post-disaster stages by the CSOs and the Government towards mitigating the impact of disaster or tackling long-term vulnerabilities and dealing with newer threats in the wake/aftermath of a disaster were not included in disaster management activities.

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Disaster Response

• Disaster response – rescue, medical aid, food, shelter –temporary, intermediate, and long range, restoration of communications, affected infrastructure, means of livelihood etc. defects in planning may be noticed during this period, highlighting procedural, systems flaws or failures in implementing the plan.

• In 2001 high velocity hurricane hit Cuba, but only five people died due to near perfect disaster management plan in design and execution – 700,000 people were evacuated from Havana and other threatened areas.

• About 80 % of disasters are classified as ‘natural’

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Organization for Disaster Management• To take preventive and relief operations

organizations have been set up at international, national and local levels

• IDNDR – International Decade of Natural Disaster Reduction: Secretariat in Geneva – Scientific and Technical Committee

• Union Level Organization for Disaster Management – • Advisory committee and national executive

committee• National Disaster Management Authority and Sub-

committee

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State & District Level• State Executive Committee and its sub-

committee• State Disaster Management Committee and

an advisory committee• District Level – Local authority and its sub-

committee• District Disaster Management authority and

advisory committee.

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Role of IDNDR

• IDNDR works through IDNDR National Committee and Focal Points which exist in 138 countries (1989)

• IDNDR, located in Geneva, is part of the UN department of humanitarian affairs

• The IDNDR Scientific and Technical Committee is an advisory body with experts in economics, social sciences, engineering, public health, industry, geology, meteorology, etc.

• A group of well-known personalities, the Special High Level Council promotes global awareness of disaster reduction

• A UN inter-agency group works regularly with the IDNDR secretariat, as well as a contact group of Geneva-based diplomatic missions

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Union Level Organization

• The National Disaster Management AuthorityConsists of the chairperson and nine members• The Prime Minister is the Chairperson – ex

officio• All the members, not exceeding nine are

nominated by the chairperson• A Vice-chairperson is also nominated by the

chairperson from among the members

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Powers & Functions of the National Authority• Lay down policies on disaster management• Approve the National Plan• Approve plans made by the Ministries or departments of the

Government of India• Guidelines for the State Governments• Guidelines for the Union Departments for the purpose of

integrating the measures for prevention of disaster or the mitigation of its effects in their development plans and projects

• Coordinate the enforcement and implementation of the policy of plan for disaster management

• Recommend provision of funds• Provide support to other countries as decided by the GoI• Lay down broad policies and guidelines for the functioning of the

National Institute of Disaster Management.

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National Plan• The national Plan shall be prepared by the

National Executive committee having regard to the National Policy and in consultation with the State Governments and expert bodies or organizations in the field of disaster management to be approved by the National Authority.

• The National Plan shall include --1. Measures to be taken for the prevention of

disasters, or the mitigation of their effects

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National Plan …2. Measures to be taken for the integration of mitigation

measures in the development plans3. Measures to be taken for preparedness and capacity building

to effectively respond to any threatening disaster situations or disaster

4. Roles and responsibilities of different Ministries or departments of the Government of India in respect of the above

• The National Plan shall be reviewed and updateannually

• Appropriate provisions shall be made by the CentralGovernment for financing the measures to be carried out under the National Plan

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Guidelines for Minimum Standards• The National Authority shall recommend guidelines for

the minimum standards of relief to be provided to persons affected by disaster, which shall include, --

• The minimum requirements to be provided in the relief camps in relation to shelter, food, drinking water, medical cover and sanitation;

• The special provisions to be made for widows and orphans;

• Ex gratia assistance on account of loss of life as also assistance on account of damage to houses and for restoration of means of livelihood;

• Such other relief as may be necessary.

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State & District Level

• At the state level Chief Minister , ex-officio, is the chairperson and eight other member nominated by him. The Chairperson of the State Executive Committee, ex officio, is also a member of the State Authority and he is the Vice-Chairperson of the State Authority.

• District Disaster Management Authority is headed by the DM/Collector/Deputy Commissioner with seven other members including the elected representative of the local authority (co-chairperson) / Chief Executive Officer of the District Authority in the Tribal Areas, ex-officio, the SP/SSP, ex-officio, the Chief Medical Officer, and two other district level officers to be nominated by the state government.

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State & District Level…

• In a district where zila parishad exists, the chairperson thereof shall be the co-chairperson of the District Authority.

• Additional Collector of the district shall be the Chief Executive officer of the District Authority.

• Advisory Committee -- The State Authority may constitute an advisory committee, consisting of experts in the field of disaster management and having practical experience of disaster management to make recommendations on different aspects of disaster management.

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Powers & Functions of State Authority• Lay down the State disaster management policy• Approve the State Plan in accordance with the guidelines laid

down by the National Authority• Approve the disaster management plans prepared by the

departments of the State Government• Lay down guidelines to be followed by the departments of

the State Government for the purpose of integration of measures for prevention of disasters and mitigation in their development plans and projects and provide necessary technical assistance thereof;

• Coordinate the implementation of the State Plan;• Recommend provision of funds for mitigation and

preparedness measures;

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Functions of the State Executive Committee• Coordinate and monitor the implementation of the

National Policy, the National Plan and the State Plan• Examine the vulnerability of different parts of the

state to different forms of disasters and specify measures to be taken for their prevention or mitigation

• Lay down guidelines for preparation of disaster management plans by the departments of the State Government and District Authorities

• Evaluate preparedness at all governmental and non-governmental levels to respond to any threatening disaster situation or disaster and give directions

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Functions of the State Executive Committee…• Promote general education, awareness and community

training in regard to the forms of disasters to which parts of the state are vulnerable and the measures that may be taken by such community to prevent the disaster, mitigate and respond to such disaster

• Provide technical assistance to District and local authorities for carrying out their functions effectively

• Advise the State Government regarding all financial matters relating to disaster management

• Examine the suitability of the infrastructure planned and executed for disaster prevention and mitigation

• Provide information to the National Authority relating to different aspects of disaster management.

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Role & Responsibility of District Authority• Prepare disaster management plan including district

response• Coordinate and monitor the implementation of the

National and State policy• Identification of vulnerable areas of the district for taking

preventive as well as relief arrangements• Give directions to the various district authorities for

prevention and mitigation of disasters• Organize special training programs for different levels to

officers, employees, volunteers• Set-up, maintain, review, update early warnings system

and district response mechanism ….

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Role & Responsibility of District Authority…• Establish stockpiles of relief and rescue materials• Identify buildings and places which could be used

in the event of a threat or actual disaster• Involve the NGOs and other social-welfare

institutions working at grass-roots level in the district for disaster management

• Ensure the efficient working of communication system and devise an alternative system of communication

• Carry out periodical drills involving authorities, NGOs and the general public.

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Role & Responsibility of District Authority…• Provide information to the State Authority relating

to different aspects of disaster management• Review the state of capabilities for responding to

any disaster or threatening disaster situation in the district and give necessary directions to the relevant departments or authorities at the district level for their up gradation as may be necessary

• Perform such other functions as the State Government or State Authority may assign to it for disaster management in the district.

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In the Event of Threat or Disaster…

The District Authority may• Give directions for the release and use of resources available

with any department of the government and the local authority in the district;

• Control and restrict the vehicular traffic to, from within, the vulnerable, or affected area;

• Control and restrict the entry of any person, his movement within and departure from, a vulnerable or affected area;

• Remove debris, conduct search and carry out rescue operations;• Provide shelter, food, drinking water and essential provisions,

healthcare and services;• Establish emergency communication systems in the affected

area; …

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In the Event of Threat or Disaster…• Make arrangements for the disposal of the unclaimed dead

bodies;• Consult experts in the relevant fields to advise and assist it

may deem necessary;• Procure exclusive or preferential use of amenities from any

authority or person;• Construct temporary bridges or other necessary structures

and demolish structures which may be hazardous to public or aggravate the effects of the disaster;

• Ensure that the NGOs carry out their activities in an equitable and non-discriminatory manner;

• Take any other such step as may be necessary.

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Disaster Management

Four major Components1. Preparedness – measures designed to organize and

facilitate timely and effective rescue, relief and rehabilitation measures at all levels international to national and local

2. Prevention – advance planning and environment protection

3. Mitigation – to reduce both the effect of hazard and vulnerable conditions through sustainable development

4. Rehabilitation – returning to normal or better life through well laid out plans.

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Preparedness, Prevention, Mitigation and Rehabilitation

• Prevention is better than cure• Preparedness is the first initiative of prevention• Preparedness for disasters done meticulously

means half of the problem is solved• In developed countries preparedness and

prevention help them in minimizing loss to life and property

• In developing countries, including India, the story is different

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Disaster Preparedness• Disaster preparedness is a continuous process• It involves the following steps:1. Identification of disaster prone areas and regions2. Establishing communication, information, and warning system3. Designing coordination and response mechanism4. Planning for financial and other resources for increased

readiness which can be mobilized in disaster situations5. Public education and involvement of civil society organizations 6. Regular drills to check the responses of the various systems,

authorities and organizations7. Identification of existing and/ or building infrastructure

required for sheltering the people at the time of threat or after the disaster has struck

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Prevention

• A culture of prevention is to be installed in all communities and among disaster managers.

Principles of disaster prevention management are1. Risk assessment is necessary for adoption of adequate and

effective disaster reduction policies2. Disaster prevention & preparedness are of primary importance in

reducing the need for disaster relief3. It should be apart of development policy and planning at the

national, regional, bilateral, multilateral and international levels4. Early warning system and effective communication system are a

must5. Participation of local communities and CSOs and NGOs6. International community to share necessary technology to

prevent, reduce and mitigate disasters.

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Mitigation

• Mitigation is the measures taken to reduce both the effect of the hazard itself and the vulnerable conditions to it in order to reduce the scale of a future disaster

• Examples – water management in drought prone areas, building of dams/ bunds and other such measures to reduce the chances of floods, early and correct warning systems for the people and fishermen on the coastal areas, regular inspection of infrastructure to avoid their collapse, building bunkers for citizens in case of war, adequate pre-storage of necessities required for use after a disaster.

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Principles of Mitigation1. Integrating disaster mitigation with development plans2. Effective communication systems3. Use of latest IT technology4. Insurance in all relevant sectors5. Extensive public awareness and education campaigns in

urban and rural areas6. Legal and legislative support7. Greater involvement of NGOs/private sector8. Allocating separate funds for disaster relief in normal

budget9. Strict review of housing, drainage, pollution control

measures.

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Relief and Rehabilitation

• Relief and rehabilitation are the most important steps needed to be taken immediately after a disaster

• Indians are very sympathetic to the people in distress. • Whenever there are floods, serious accidents or any

other calamity people contribute old clothes and food necessary for the immediate help needed by the victims of the calamities

• NGOs, volunteers, doctors rush to the site of a calamity and after a couple of days they leave for the safety of their own homes.

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Ingredients of Effective Rehabilitation

1. Prepare Disaster plans area-wise2. Effective coordination to avoid delays and provide timely helps3. Psychological counseling to kindle will power among the

disaster affected people4. Effective coordination in assessment of the damages and the

priorities of relief arrangements5. Harmony and goodwill among all sections of the society

avoiding political and community discrimination6. Good governance through dedicated, honest and hardworking

personnel in administration7. Involvement of CSOs, NGOs, and general public in different

levels of relief and rehabilitation measures – immediate, short-term, and long term

8. Permanent rehabilitation measures should be taken to minimize possibilities of similar disasters in future

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Disaster Management Act 2005• Definition: “Disaster means a catastrophe,

mishap, calamity or grave occurrence in any area, arising from natural or man-made cause, or by accident or negligence which results in substantial loss of life or human suffering or damage to, and destruction of property, or damage to or degradation of environment, and is of such nature or magnitude as to be beyond the coping capacity of the community of the affected area.”

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Disaster Management Act 2005

• Disaster Management means a continuous and integrated process of planning, organizing, coordinating and implementation measures which are necessary or expedient for –

1. Prevention of danger or threat of any disaster;2. Mitigation or reduction of risk of any disaster or its severity or

consequences;3. Capacity-building;4. Preparedness to deal with any disaster;5. Prompt response to any threatening disaster situation or

disaster;6. Assessing the severity or magnitude of effects of any disaster;7. Evacuation, rescue and relief; and8. Rehabilitation and reconstruction.

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Basic Features of NDMA

• Coordination and monitoring• The role of elders, senior citizens, and locally

respected leaders;• The role of the NGOs, Self-Help Groups and

other Community Based Organizations (CBOs);• The role of women as active participants in

DM including risk reduction, mitigation, preparedness and awareness generation;

• The role of urban and Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs)

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Sections of the Frame Work

• Operational• Administrative• Financial• Legal• The processSeven battalions of the National Disaster Response Force

(NDRF) have been positioned at nine different locations to cover the entire country and their role is

• To help the states in capacity building, running of mock drills and the process of central assistance to the states

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Vulnerability of India

• India has been traditionally vulnerable to natural disasters on account of its geo-climate conditions.

• Floods, draught, cyclones, earthquakes and landslides have been a recurrent phenomena

• About 60% of the landmass is prone to earthquakes of various intensities

• Over 40 million (4 crore) hectares is prone to floods• About 8% of the area is prone to cyclones• 68% of the area is susceptible to drought• Between 1990 and 2000 an average of 4344 people lost

their lives and about 30 million (3 crore) people were affected by disasters every year

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Global Phenomena

• Natural and man-made disasters are a global phenomena

• In 1989 UN General Assembly declared the decade 1990-2000 as the International decade for Natural Disaster Reduction with the objective to reduce loss of loves and property and restrict socio-economic damage through concerted international action, specially in developing countries

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Principles of Disaster Management• Risk assessment – proper assessment of the

probability and risk involved of a hazard is the first step for preparing an adequate and successful disaster reduction policies

• Disaster prevention and preparedness are of primary importance in reducing the need for disaster relief

• Integration -- It should be an integral part of the development policy and planning at the local, regional, national, multilateral and international levels

• Development and deployment of early warning systems to avoid the magnitude of the effects of a hazard

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Principles of Disaster Management…• Involvement of communities – preventive measures are

most effective when it involve participation at all levels, from the local community, civil society organizations(CSO), corporate sector, national, international organizations

• Design --Vulnerability can be reduced by the application of proper design and patterns of development focused on target groups through appropriate education & training

• Collaboration -- International understanding of sharing technology and resources to mitigate disasters

• Primary Responsibility -- Each nation has the primary responsibility of protecting its people, infrastructure and other national assets from the impact of natural and man-made disasters

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Mitigation

• Mitigation embraces all measures taken to reduce both the effect of the hazard itself and the vulnerable conditions to it in order to reduce the scale of a future disaster.

• Two Approaches to mitigation1. Engineered Structures, and2. Non-engineered Structures

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Mitigation

Engineered structures involve architects andengineers during the planning, designing, andconstruction of structures, including buildings, dams,embankments, roads, bridges, etc.Many countries have laid rules and laws that are strictlyfollowed for engineered construction. Japan is a classicexample. The country is prone to earth-quakes on almostdaily basis, but the effects are minimal. For example thetrains stop automatically when there is seismic activity;all building are designed and constructed to withstandhigh magnitude earth quakes.

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Latur & Los Angeles• Vulnerability is linked with the level of socio-economic ability

to cope with the resulting event in order to resist major disruption or loss

• In 1993 the earth-quake in Latur, Maharashtra, left over 10,000 dead and destroyed houses and other properties of 20,000 households.

• In 1971, the earth-quake of higher magnitude in Los Angeles resulted in the deaths of 55 only.

• Physical and socio-economic vulnerabilty is high in India. Disasters are more disastrous where the victims happen to be poor, living in densely populated areas, closely located to flood prone, drought prone or coastal areas prone to tsunami and cyclones.

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Disaster Management Cycle

• The concept of disaster management cycle integrates isolated attempts on the part of different actors, government and non-government, towards vulnerability reduction or disaster mitigation, as phases occurring in different time periods in disaster management continuum.

• Planned Approach – this concept has facilitated a planned approach to disaster management.

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Disaster Management Cycle

• Prevention, mitigation and preparedness form pre-disaster activities in the disaster management cycle

• Response, comprising relief, recovery and rehabilitation are post-disaster management activities

• The complete cycle of disaster management, therefore is the complete realm of activities and situations that occur

• Before• During, and • After disasters• This documentation is a learning process to reduce the

vulnerability and to increase the effectives of preparedness and relief. It is a holistic approach.

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Stages in Disaster Management

• Disaster management is disaster risk management – systematic process of using administrative decisions, organization, operation skills, and capacities to implement policies, strategies and coping capacities of the society and communities to lessen the impact of natural hazards and related environmental and technological disasters.

• Phases – disaster event, response, recovery, development, mitigation, and preparedness.

• Case Study of Gujarat Earthquake of 26 Jan, 2001• Within two years the affected area emerged as a more

vibrant and capable of effectively coping with future calamities.

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Disaster Event

• Real-time event of a hazard occurring and affecting the elements at risk

• The duration may be a few seconds, like an earthquake; tsunami a few minutes, cloud burst a few hours, floods a few days and drought a couple of months.

• The suffering of lives and property may differ in similar events

• Economically weaker sections of society, women, children, handicapped, old people suffer more because they have lesser capability to fight the natural & man-made hazards.

• Each event may require different response

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Flaws in Disaster Response

• The World Disaster Report of 2002 states that thousands of lives are lost and millions of people left weakened each year because of donor reluctance to invest in measures that reduce the impact of disasters.

• Investing in mitigation issues like building long-term resilience of vulnerable communities would better serve the purpose of disaster management.

• There is widespread corruption/ leakage in disaster relief disbursements.

• Business interests press on projects planning and execution to suit their personal gains rather than public good.

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Risk Reduction: Mitigation and Preparedness• TDRM approach as explained in the Regional Workshop

(2001), held in Kathmandu, organized by the Asian Disaster reduction centre (ADRC) and OCHA, Kobe are as follows:

• Comprehensively define the various concerns and gaps in the different phases of disaster management cycle – underlying the CAUSES of DISASTER, and the CONTEXTUAL FACTORS in disaster risks and its management

• Enhancement of local capability• Promote multilevel, multidisciplinary coordination and

collaboration among stakeholders in disaster reduction and response.

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Implementation of TDRM1. Policy-- clear & comprehensive policy that defines the

objectives and commitment of the government, organization, or community to disaster reduction and response

2. Structures and systems -- establishment of strengthening of focal points and coordination bodies.

3. Capacity-building – enhancement of national and local capacity to establish and implement disaster reduction and response measures, especially for vulnerable sectors and communities.

4. Resources – identification and provision of resource requirements, including funds and trained human resources

5. Implementation – implement the risk management process from national to the community level in continuation.

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Response Mechanism in India

• In India there is integrated administrative machinery for management of disasters at the national, state, district and sub-district levels

• The primary responsibility of undertaking rescue, relief and rehabilitation measures is that of the state governments

• The central government supplements the efforts of the state governments by way of physical and financial resources, if need arises

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Response of the Central Government

Two types1. Policy Response2. Administrative ResponseThe Central response is3. Policy Response, keeping in view the short and

long term policy objectives of the government4. Administrative response, broadly relates toi) Operational requirementsii) Provision of central assistance as per existing

policy

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Central Initiatives

• Visits of the calamity affected areas by President, PM and other dignitaries

• Activating the administrative machinery for assisting in relief measures

• Setting up machinery for implementing, reviewing and monitoring of relief measures

• The operational aspects of the administrative response could be further classified into

• Primary relief functions, and• Secondary relief functions.

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Primary Relief Functions

1. Forecasting and operation of warning system2. Maintenance of uninterrupted communication3. Wide publicity to warnings of impending

calamity, disaster preparedness and relief measures through multimedia

4. Transport for evacuation and movement of essential commodities

5. Check on prices of essential goods and services – use of PDS for distribution

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Primary Relief Functions…

6. Ensuring availability of medicines, vaccines and drugs

7. Preservation and restoration of physical communication links

8. Investments in infrastructure9. Mobilization of financial resources.

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Secondary Relief Functions1. Flood/inflow forecasts from Central Water

Commission2. Relief, rehabilitation and restoration through military

aid to civil authorities3. Contingency plans for crops, cattle preservation,

nutrition, health and hygiene4. Technical and technological inputs for provision of

drinking water5. Technical assistance in the water budgeting and

water management for various uses; and coordination of the activities of the state agencies and voluntary agencies.

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Energizing Local Government• Since the immediate and greatest sufferers of a

disaster are the local community, efforts controlling disasters are concentrated at the local level

• Much depends on the initiative at that level – the local people, PRIs, local volunteer groups (CSOs), and NGOs

• At the central level, Lal Bahadur National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie and similar institutions in all the states have been given a mandate to involve all the stake holders in Disaster policy planning, training, sensitizing, monitoring etc.

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Role of Public Administration Training Institutions

• In Rajasthan HCM – RIPA (Rajasthan Institute of Public Administration), Jaipur is the state nodal agency for disaster management studies and training.

• It functions as the state Centre for Disaster Management

Its objectives are• Training of different stakeholders in Disaster Management• IEC activities to generate community awareness towards

disaster management• Research and documentation of different disasters in the

state

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Role of RIPA…

Training• On continuous basis trainings are conducted for

government officials, specific groups like Civil Defence Wardens, NCC, Scouts & Guides, NSS, NYK, PRI members, NGOs etc.

Other activities• The centre distributes the various booklets published by it

on Earthquake, Flood, Drought, Fire, First Aid etc.• Faculty members of the centre also deliver lectures in

schools & colleges on invitation to sensitize the youth towards Disaster Management.

• Email id of nodal officer kartikeya_misra@yahoo.co.in

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Suggestions for Improving NDM

1. Strengthen the Nodal Planning Agency with experts from Different Areas. At present the existing nodal agency is acting like a post office devoid of expertise in different areas of DM. It should be strengthened with:

(a) Part time experts for different areas(b) Furnish Control room of nodal agency with latest

technology and manned by technical experts(c) Documentation – historical, present plans, future

design for DM must be systematically compiled to have easy assess and availability

(d) Positive interest by politicians and bureaucrats(e) Constant monitoring and evaluation even after the

disaster to ensure long-term rehabilitation

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Suggestions for Improving NDM …2. Permanent Machinery -- Permanent establishment

of State Disaster Planning Preparedness Management Machinery and not ad-hoc arrangements as and when disasters occur

3. Genuine NGO’s participation in Disaster Preparedness Plan according to their specialization and track record

4. Participation of the people. They are the real architects of a nation.

5. Government administration should be transparent, responsive, accountable and like a learning organization

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Suggestions for Improving NDM …

6. Need to create effective preparedness at local level – conduct regular exercises

7. Disaster Mapping – mapping is made to assess the impact of disaster on population, property and natural resources. This will help in providing pre and post-disaster relating information which will further help in matters such as risk assessment, systematic rescue and relief operations;

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Suggestions for Improving NDM …8. Leadership for Disaster Preparedness – bureaucrats with

proven leadership dynamism should be in-charge of nodal agencies

9. Leadership & Crisis Preparedness Management – important features of crisis management are

i) Identify the problems that could lead to a crisis and learn when and how to intervene most effectively

ii) Know how to carry out the difficult planning and coordination activities associated with preparing for, and managing crisis;

iii) Develop special negotiation & communication skills required to reduce conflict or ensure cooperation in a crisis situation

iv) Develop social knowledge and expertise in the field.

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DROUGHT MANAGEMENT – A CASE STUDY 2002

Prepared by Prof. J M OVASDI

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DROUGHT MANAGEMENT -- A Case Study• The Crop Weather Watch Group (CWWG), an Inter-

Ministerial body set-up in the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, anticipated weak monsoon in early July 2002.

• In July 2002 the monsoon was actually 51% lower than normal

• By mid-July itself the Central Government initiated drought management related initiatives

• On 24th July the agriculture and relief ministers of all the states likely to be affected by severe drought was held by the Union Agriculture Minister

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DROUGHT MANAGEMENT --A Case Study • Immediately a Task Force on Drought Management

was set up in July 2002 under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister with Agriculture Minister, Finance Minister, Rural Development Minister, Food and Public Distribution Minister and Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission as members to continuously monitor the situation and to provide assistance to the affected states well in time.

• The worst affected states were – Rajasthan, MP, Chattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Rajasthan was worst affected.

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Drought – Case Study

• As desired by the Task Force, the Central Government took a number of initiatives like:

• Advance release of funds from Calamity Relief Fund, under relaxed norms

• Release of food grains free of cost for relief work and employment

• Deferment /waiver of agricultural loans or interest• Free transportation of fodder and water.• The total resources mobilized in advance of the actual

drought was, `20,000 crore to finance relief programs.• Expenditure for relief works was given precedence by

the central and state financial departments

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Case Study contd…

• Drought of 2002 was so severe that huge areas remained unsown – 180 lakh hectares

• Under normal rules agriculture input subsidy is payable to Small and Marginal Farmers when their crops suffer damage of 50 % or more as a result of natural calamity. In this case no crop could be sown and farmers were not eligible for relief in the form of subsidy. 50 % of such area was in Rajasthan.

• Most of the affected states adopted the unusual method of declaring draught on eye-estimation

• States were asked to submit their need for funds and relief much before the draught actually took place

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Drought – Case Study…

• Special Measures to combat impact of Drought

1. Agriculture input subsidy was extended to farmers owning more than two hectares of land. 10 million (1 crore) farmers got this benefit. Expenditure ` 7000 crore

2. Improving flow of credit in drought affected areas by NABARD

3. Power supply for minimum 8-10 hours to agriculture sector

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Drought – Case Study…

• Water resources sector Departments of the State Governments advocated water budgeting – first priority to drinking water, next, fodder, then agriculture. Rainwater-harvesting program was the outcome of the drought of 2002.

WATER HARVESTING INITIATIVE• Tamil Nadu was the first state to promote

rainwater-harvesting through an ordinance in 2003. The Chief-Minister personally wrote to the municipal and PRI officials to building the desired infrastructure by 30 September 2003 and it was actually accomplished.

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Drought – Case Study…

• Employment Generation – with 180 lakh hectares unsown due to monsoon failure in early July the Task Force, in its very first meeting understood the need to initiate employment generation works at an early date instead of waiting for the people to suffer and then ask for relief measures.

• Allocation of Food grains – the affected states were put in three categories A: UP, Uttranchal, Punjab, Haryana, HP, Jharkhand and Kerala. B- MP, Chattisgarh, Orissa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, AP, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. C: Rajasthan

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Relief as per Category A, B, C

• A category states -- allocation of food grains was made for 20 % of BPL families

• B category states – up to 50 % of willing rural BPL families• For both A and B categories of affected states the

quantum of food grains was 5 kg for ten days a month• Rajasthan – 74 worst affected blocks covering all BVPL

and vast majority of APL• For the remaining 163 blocks, each willing rural BPL family

were employed for at least 10 days with 8 kg foodgrains per day for worst affected 74 blocks and for the remaining blocks 6 kg per day, later on increased to 8 kg. the employment days per month were increased to 12 for all blocks.

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Monitoring

• Monitoring teams, vigilance squads, field visits of area officers and involvement of peoples’ representatives and voluntary agencies functioned as watch dogs against mal practices on drought relief program.

• Longest Employment Generation – the duration of the employment generation prog. Started in August 2002 and continued till July 2003. It was one of the longest ever employment generation program as a relief measure.

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Employment Generation…

• At the peak drought period, 32 million people were employed on 3 lakh relief projects.

• 1400 million man-days were generated at a cost of `9,000 crore, including 9 million tonnes of foodgrains.

• Both income security and food security objectives were achieved

• World Record of Logistics -- 40 million tonnes of foodgrains were transported by rail within 5 months. It was one of the largest ever transportation management in the world.

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Fodder for the Cattle & Drinking Water• Fodder scarcity was noticed in September 2002 and

mostly in Rajasthan.• 15,000 cattle camps were set up in different states

where 110 million cattle were provided fodder from December 2002 to June 2003.

• 3.19 million tonnes of fodder was transported by rail from Punjab and Haryana to Rajasthan, and 5000 trucks daily

• Drinking Water – 1,75,000 habitations and 500 cities and small towns were provided with potable water by the Indian Railways through 75,000 tankers @ 75 million liters per day.

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DISASTER MANAGEMENTEARTH QUAKE

A CASE STUDY OF KUTCH (GUJARAT) 2001

From the book “Management of Non-Governmental Organisations – Towards a

Developed Civil Society” by Prof. J M OVASDI

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26 January 2001• Kutch district: Population 1,263,000 (1991 census); Men: women

643,000: 620,000; Area 45,652 sq. km.; Villages 949; Talukas 9. • Nature’s Fury: The severe earthquake that struck Gujarat on 26

January 2001 flattened much of the state. Out of the 21 affected districts, those most affected were Kutch-Bhuj, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar and Rajkot. Within these districts more than 37.8 million people were affected.

• According to official figures released by the central Government as of 6 February 2001, the earthquake killed 16,459 people and injured 68,478.

• Unofficial sources estimated any thing between 20,000 and 50,000 deaths. The Natural Disaster Management Control Room located at the Ministry of Agriculture in Delhi reported on 6 February 2001 that 12,250 cattle died, 228,906 houses/huts were destroyed and 397,615 houses/huts were damaged. According to preliminary assessments, the damage to buildings and infrastructure amounted close `6 billion.

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Response to the Disaster

• The Government of India, the State Government of Gujarat, national and international NGOs, the UN System and bilateral donors responded with a variety of initiatives.

• National/Government Response: The central Government immediately launched a massive rescue and relief operation by mobilizing available resources and personnel to mitigate the suffering of the victims. The initial relief effort was centrally coordinated by the Natural Disaster Management Control Room, which worked closely together with the State Government of Gujarat.

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Response to the Disaster

• As of 5 February 2001, the Central Government had announced financial assistance of IRS 500.00 Crore equaling USD 1 billion.

• In addition, the Central Government made available close to 95,000 MT of food.

• Other relief items dispatched through the Central Government included clothing and tents, medical supplies and personnel, fuel and communication equipment.

• Several states including the neighboring States of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra had provided food, blankets, medical supplies and personnel and a wide variety of other relief items.

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NGOs Involvement

• The Relief Commissioner of Bhuj established an NGO coordination centre with 300 NGOs. Later several Sub-centres were established.

• The Kutch Navnirman Abhiyan network was started to undertake a monumental relief operation, probably the greatest ever trial of their physical, moral and emotional strength.

• Over 200 NGOs of Gujarat state had come together under the aegis of Janpath Citizen's Initiative to support the Abhiyan network.

• Experienced Self-Employed Womens’ Association (SEWA) teams were in the field since the day of the earthquake, trying to get an accurate assessment of the damage amid the confusion and rumors, going directly to the people affected in order to ascertain their needs.

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Rescue Initiatives

• In addition, many international NGOs have been responding and are active in the area.

• 22 Search and Rescue (SAR) teams made up of 399 rescuers and 26 rescue dogs equipped with technical and rescue equipment assisted in the search and rescue operation.

• Medical and SAR teams from Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy/Spain, Japan, Mexico, Poland, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Switzerland, Turkey, USA, and the United Kingdom were involved in the Search and Rescue operation. After the rescue phase was over, most SAR teams left.

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United Nations Response• The in-country UN System through the UN Disaster Management

Team (UNDMT) led by the UN Resident Coordinator, immediately mobilized and deployed a five-member United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) Team on 27 January.

• In Ahmedabad, a Reception Centre for registering in-coming teams and relief items was established at the airport during the rescue operation.

• The team established an On-Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC), in close collaboration with the Indian authorities and the relevant UN agencies.

• The UNDMT together with Ericsson and Ham Radio set up communications systems in the affected area.

• However even after ten days of the earthquake the UN teams could not quantify the full extent of aid required.

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Army's Initiative

• The Gujarat earthquake had resulted in a collapse of the local health command and control structure.

• The military hospital at Bhuj, whose role was to supplement civil services had to serve as a first responder and was left as the only functional hospital in the city.

• The civil hospitals were completely destroyed due to structural damages. Since the military hospital had structural damages as well, the surgeries had to take place under tent cover.

• A massive effort was mounted by the Armed Forces to manage the disaster.

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Practical Problems Assessed by UN Team

• The armed forces, in the management of casualties and injuries of such great extent, faced a number of practical problems. These problems ranged from administrative domain to media management and other related aspects.

• Logistics: The structural damage to the hospital led to a collapse of the local health command and control structure. There was also a lack of communication, which led to delaying of organizing the medical teams and medical camps. The water and electricity supply had been completely ripped off initially which led to associated problems like absence of laundry services etc. One of the areas of concern, which needed proper attention and lacked strength in the field, was of logistics management.

• Inflow of medical supplies, in many cases not need based, was a major management problem due to inappropriate donations and absence of a supply management system.

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Practical Problems…

• Un-preparedness: Numerous difficulties were faced in the realm of patient care and casualty of such great extents. A field hospital was established out in the open and operated thousands of patient in spite of many problems such as shortage of hospital beds, linen, operating rooms, equipment, instruments and disinfectants which was basically due to the un-preparedness of the medical team to address such a situation.

• Such situations could be suitable avoided with proper planning and preparedness in the medical sector.

• The issue of casualty evacuation also needed to be properly dealt.

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Practical Problems…

• Bio-medical Waste Disposal: One of the major issues of the health sector during a disaster situation, which were faced in the Gujarat earthquake, was of biomedical waste disposal and disposal of dead bodies.

• Since no prior plan was made for post disaster management of the area, the authorities and the concerned departments were at a total loss to deal with such disposal.

• There existed no alternative arrangement to deal with the human refuse generation in the aftermath of the disaster even beyond the initial period, which poses another major task for effective post disaster planning.

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Lessons learned

1. The health authorities and the health professionals need to ensure that mitigation methodologies are applied during the reconstruction of health facilities.

2. Coordination and health disaster management is essential and there should be special equipped space and personnel for this purpose.

3. Proper information management can bring about a lot of difference in the disaster management scenario. There exists a need to create an information cell, which should be entrusted with the job of information collection and information dissemination.

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Lessons learned…

4. Circulation and dissemination of proper information can be a great aid in controlling panic and unfounded stories about the disaster.

5. Proper media management can act as an effective tool for the same. The health professionals need training in dealing with the media in disasters.

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Lessons learned as per NGOs Assessment

• The Gujarat earthquake witnessed tremendous, unprepared, and spontaneous response of citizens.

• The positive points of this response were continuous supply of food, water and medicine and provision of first aid, transport and care of patients & their relatives.

• However, there existed many drawbacks in the post earthquake management scenario, some of which are:

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Drawbacks in Relief• Lack of coordination & direction – The various agencies

(government, NGOs and international agencies), which had come for the aid of the earthquake victims failed to collaborate with each other and supplement each other’s task. The net result being that there was total lack of coordination, direction and information exchange between the various agencies.

• Irrationalities in the medical sector – The injured patients were treated without any analysis of the kind of injuries being faced by them. An ad-hoc approach of treatment existed creating more complications for future. There also existed a lack of systematic follow-up of the injured patients.

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Drawbacks in Relief…

• Charity without respect for human dignity – The Gujarat earthquake saw immense charity being poured into the state; however, in most cases the items received in these charities were sent without any respect for human dignity. Charity of torn and unusable clothes highlights the point.

• Short-term involvement – In the aftermath of the earthquake, there was a massive involvement of voluntary agencies, individuals etc. mainly in relief activities. However, this involvement was short termed and failed to provide assistance to the victims on a continuous basis till the rehabilitation phase was complete.

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Drawbacks in Relief…• Ignorance: It would be worth mentioning that there existed a

total lack of information and awareness about the affected parts of Gujarat being in the high seismic zone (zone 5) and its implications among all sections of the society. Consequently, the community was not prepared to face a disaster of this scale.

• Lack of preparedness for dealing with disasters was evident in almost all realms and particularly in communication, coordination & control, rescue operation & medical relief. There also existed a lack of information on local & international resources for disaster relief. Thus, it can be concluded that a lack of planning for post disaster management was manifested in almost all the sectors and activities.

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Suggestions for future preparedness

• Community First -- In any disaster, the community is the first responder and should be made an integral part of the disaster information system. It would be advisable to evolve a system for prediction and continuous information to the community for capacitating it to face disasters.

• Mapping of resources can act as an effective tool for disaster management. The law of secrecy, binding the departments who are involved in mapping activities to keep the information a secret and not share it with other authorities and the public, should be removed.

• Maps of road, population, medical facilities and communication should be made readily available. A Data bank on relief facilities like the fire brigade, earth-moving equipment etc. and their source should be created to ease their procurement in times of disaster.

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Suggestions…• Centralized Information System -- It would also be

advisable to have a single web site for disaster information to avoid confusion and duplicity of information on the Internet.

• Emergency medical response system -- An emergency medical response system should be evolved to facilitate the work of medical sector in times of disaster. The medical colleges, civil defense, district health & medical services, state transport and railways should have emergency hospitals to cater to the medical needs of a disaster situation.

• Manual -- A manual for voluntary and charitable agencies working in the field of disaster management should be developed to act as a guide for these agencies.

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Well Done Bill Gates!

• We would like to conclude with the role performed by the richest Voluntary Organization in the world "Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation" through Save the Children Alliance. This group was functional for nearly two years after the disaster. On their behalf one of the officials of Save the Children (SC) prepared a brief of his observations on disaster management. An edited version is reproduced here which gives us the perspective of a foreign aid agency of our disaster management system in action.

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Disaster Management- Some of the experiences during the first ten days or early weeks:

1) Flood of Volunteers: Thousands of volunteers reached the earthquake area and they were keen to help people. However they added to the chaos. Be careful with the volunteers. Other than those who are professional in medical, technical areas, being experienced in rescuing operations or managing/organizing in crisis situations, and do real work in medical care, sanitation, fixing the infrastructural services, etc. discourage the others who just want to be there and support the people to go to the area, and willing to do anything, something. After two weeks only they were deployed to the region to do some real work around organized programs fitting to their any kind of expertise (even cooking), as very well oriented before. Otherwise, of course there was no doubt about their good intentions, but especially for some young volunteers this could happen to be an adventure like mountain climbing, survival exercise etc.

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Experiences during the first ten days2) Coordination is a must and it was a very difficult exercise.

Coordination needs leadership. In this type of devastating and large disasters, usually the local officials undergo the same shock and trauma, you should not expect too much from them. This is true for the central ones too. Once the hierarchy collapses it is very difficult (more than NGOs or people themselves) to re-establish it where all the decision making process based on, and this might take such a time, enough to make people crazy. In the disaster area authority demolishes and a process can be hardly established for decision-making. Groups or even individuals (some Heroes) suddenly emerge and claim leadership. Sometimes nobody knows even who are these groups /individuals and where they come from. Each one described the situation, the needs differently (from their individual perspective) and was directing the emergency aids and operations.

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Experiences during the first ten days

3) Beware of Opportunists: Such critical situations create gaps for any type of groups with agendas different than humanitarian purposes from where they might get in, and they might see this as an opportunity. They might join the whole process and claim space for their own agendas using the chaos and the frustration of the people and also clash with each other. Even if their reasons are right, they do add to the chaos.

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Experiences during the first ten days

4) Changing Needs: The list of the needs change day by day; First days the focus was on rescue equipment and excavators/machines, then food, together with medical equipment/medicine, then body (corps plastics, lime, dis-infection, burying/funeral material) clothing and then sheltering. So you have to be ready in estimating the needs before really needed. In early days both helpers and victims can be hardly realistic in terms of identification of real needs. There is a possibility that main part of the resources/money might be spent in the first two weeks, is wasted because of panic and lack of coordination. Realistic needs assessment is very important. Besides the people who can do real work and support, send one people in each settlement for realistic needs assessment; what is needed in terms of emergency and humanitarian needs.

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Experiences during the first ten days…• Usually people (officials, NGOs, etc involved in this

process) tend to describe the situation in the small area where they are located as if it is something general and valid for the whole area This tendency might have crucial results especially in terms of assessing humanitarian and emergency needs.

• Misleading information might be created by different type of psychologies, misperception etc.

• So, in a coordinated way, assign one to each settlement/neighborhood for realistic needs assessment and inform before what is crucial, urgent and indispensable for health etc.

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Work through Local Women

• Ensure them to work with local women, who are most knowledgeable about survival things, and what is really needed.

• In our case, women were later saying that they were not involved in this process and lots of resources were just wasted and spoilt.

• Food has special place; and especially in these situations, people (both the helpers and victims) think that (since they do not think about any other things) food is very important, and they will never find it and they will die because of hunger.

• We saw in most places huge piles of bread and milk boxes just thrown away on the edge of roads, and same as for the clothes...

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Monitoring Relief Agencies

5) Monitor the international Emergency relief agencies: Though they might be experienced and work in different counties, each context has its own peculiarities and they might easily fail to determine the needs realistically in a context that they work through translators who have no experience with these situations, and community work.

• Usually they have lots of monies and they want to spend it immediately. Direct them to use their money in an efficient way determined by the locals.

• On the other hand, it is a fact that in individual contacts disaster victims too tend to mislead foreigners, exaggerating their immediate needs or get something extra.

• It is advisable to ensure that the foreign NGOs work though local NGOs or organized groups and not directly work with victims.

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The Fizz is Gone

6) Diminishing Enthusiasm: Remember that all the foreign aids, local aids, volunteers come with great enthusiasm but within a few days or weeks they loose their motivation.

• "I remember, when we turned to the volunteers list a month later, we could hardly get one tenth of them who were very keen to be useful in some ways" recalled an official of Save the Children.

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Aid Distribution7) Aid Distribution Problems: The distribution of aids is

another important one. Officials, NGOs and volunteers, especially charity people tend to pour the aid unconsciously like a rain and they prefer to do it by themselves. At each settlement set up an aid distribution center managed by the officials and monitored by the NGOs and local peoples representatives. Distribution (window) should be in a centralized way. No democracy here, and ensure those charity people and organizations to leave their goods at these centers where they could be distributed in an organized way, and don't let them distribute here and there as they like.

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8) Lack of Monitoring -- NGOs were heavily involved in emergency /humanitarian aids activities but they are reported to have not bothered about their monitoring role, i.e. in terms of governmental works and policies. Women were found to be best in monitoring distribution of aids.

9) Start with Women and Children: Right on the first day, create safe, homely places for women and children.

• As soon as you go there just erect something. Tent etc. • Children are very important. When the children are

taken care of their mothers become willing volunteers to help the needy in the neighborhood.