Abstract
Disasters and development have very close correlations with each other. In other words, disasters are very complex processes/events deeply rooted in the outcome of material practices and ideological discourses of man-nature interactions. Given the complexity, unpredictability, and non-linear nature of man–nature mutual interactions, uncertainty has emerged as a major challenge in disaster research where the task of defining a disaster is contested in many ways. Therefore, despite lack of consensus over any single definition of ‘disaster’, among disaster researchers across the globe, some features are well recognized. More specifically, rising concerns about ‘social disruption’ have paved the way for the emergence of the theory of vulnerability. Against this background of evolving disaster research and education, the Indian government adopted the ‘paradigm shift’ approach in disaster management practices in recent past. In this chapter, it is argued that disaster governance in India continues to follow a narrower path. The broader objectives of the ‘paradigm shift’ approach are yet to be realized in practices. In particular, the notion of ‘technology-driven strategy’, which often dwells around hazard-centric practices, continues to dominate the new approach. In an attempt to highlight the above, this essay discusses some of the aspects involved in damage assessment and recovery programmes that were sought to be implemented in the aftermath of the tsunami of 26 December 2004 in India. In fact, many interventions in the post-tsunami phase were lopsided in favour of deploying an ‘exotic methodology’ of damage assessment. Consequently, responses followed were framed as solution-defined problems, to be resolved by experts and aid-giving agencies, rather than as responses forged for local and specific social contexts. It is concluded that the discourse of production of disaster vulnerabilities as an outcome of various socio-political as well as socio-technical processes is yet to take centre stage in policy formulations, planning, and practices.
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Notes
- 1.
Subdivided into: (1) Floods and Drainage Management, (2) Cyclones, (3) Tornadoes and Hurricanes, (4) Hailstorms, (5) Cloud Bursts, (6) Heat Waves and Cold Waves, (7) Snow Avalanches, (8) Droughts, (9) Sea Erosion, (10) Thunder and Lightning.
- 2.
Subdivided into: (1) Landslides and Mudflows, (2) Earthquakes, (3) Dam Failures/Dam Bursts, (4) Mine Fires.
- 3.
Subdivided into: (1) Chemical and Industrial Disasters, (2) Nuclear Disasters.
- 4.
Subdivided into: (1) Forest Fires, (2) Urban Fires, (3) Mine Flooding, (4) Oil Spills, (5) Major Building Collapses, (6) Serial Bomb Blasts, (7) Festival-Related Disasters, (8) Electrical Disasters and Fires, (9) Air, Road and Rail Accidents, (10) Boat Capsizing, (11) Village Fire.
- 5.
Subdivided into: (1) Biological Disasters and Epidemics, (2) Pest Attacks, (3) Cattle Epidemics, (4) Food Poisoning.
- 6.
Broad features of the Draft National Policy on DM included: (1) a holistic and proactive approach, (2) each ministry/department set apart an appropriate fund under the plan for specific schemes/projects for vulnerability reduction and preparedness, (3) each project in hazard-prone areas will have mitigation as an essential term of reference, (4) community involvement and awareness generation, (5) close interaction between the corporate sector, NGOs, the media and the government, (6) institutional structures to be built up and development of inter-state arrangements for sharing of resources during emergencies, (7) culture of planning and preparedness for capacity building, (8) construction designs as per Bureau of Standards codes, (9) all lifeline buildings, e.g., hospitals, railway stations, airport control towers, etc. to be disaster-resistant or retrofitted, (10) revision of Relief Codes in the states and developing them into disaster management codes/manuals (see GOI 2004, 9–12).
- 7.
‘Emphasise Prevention Says PM,’ Times Foundation 29 November 2006. http://timesfoundation.indiatimes.com/articleshow/729689.cms.
- 8.
Various definitions mentioned in the Disaster Management Act, 2005, include ‘affected area’, ‘capacity building’, ‘central government’, ‘disaster’, ‘disaster management’, ‘district authority’, ‘local authority’, ‘national authority’, ‘mitigation’, ‘national executive committee’, ‘national plan’, ‘preparedness’, ‘prescribed’, ‘recommended’, ‘resources’, ‘state executive committee’, ‘state government’, and ‘state plan’.
- 9.
Gazette of India (2005), 2.
- 10.
UNISDR. ISDR Terminology: Basic Terms of Disaster Risk Reduction. http://www.unisdr.org/eng/library/libterminology-eng%20home.htm. Accessed 22 May 2007.
- 11.
Themes underpinning this policy framework focus on five aspects: (1) community-based disaster management, (2) capacity development, (3) consolidation of past initiatives and best practices, (4) cooperation with agencies at national, regional and international levels, and (5) compliance and coordination to generate a multi-sectoral synergy. From the national vision and aforementioned themes, the objectives guiding the policy formulation have also evolved. These objectives are: (1) Promoting a culture of prevention and preparedness—by centre-staging DM as an overriding priority at all levels and at all times, (2) Encouraging mitigation measures based on state-of-the-art technology and environmental sustainability, (3) Mainstreaming DM concerns into the development planning process, (4) Putting in place a streamlined institutional techno-legal framework in order to create and preserve the integrity of an enabling regulatory environment and a compliance regime, (5) Developing contemporary forecasting and early warning systems backed by responsive and fail-safe communications and Information Technology (IT) support, (6) Promoting a productive partnership with the Media, NGOs and the Corporate Sector in the areas of awareness generation and capacity development, (7) Ensuring efficient response and relief with a caring humane approach towards the vulnerable sections of the society, (8) Making reconstruction an opportunity to build back better and construct disaster-resilient structures and habitats (NDMA http://ndma.gov.in. Accessed on 10 December 2015).
- 12.
National Disaster Management Authority, GoI. http://ndma.gov.in/en/about-ndma/vision.html. Accessed 10 December 2015.
- 13.
R. Lakshmi. ‘Tsunami Opens Fault Lines in Old Caste System: India’s Untouchables Allege Discrimination in Allocation of Aid.’ The Washington Post, 18 January 2005. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16472-2005Jan17.html.
- 14.
K. Moritsugu, ‘Tsunami Aid Distributed Unevenly between India’s Fishing and Farming Villages,’ South Asian Journalist Association, 7 December 2005. http://www.saja.org/resources/moritsugu/main.htm.
- 15.
K. Moritsugu, ‘A Rush to Rebuild Leads to Wasted Effort,’ South Asian Journalist Association, 7 December 2005. http://www.saja.org/resources/moritsugu/side.htm.
- 16.
Revathi was speaking in the national workshop on ‘People, Policy and Partnerships for Disaster Resilient Development’, 3–4 November 2007 at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The workshop was organized by the National Alliance for Disaster Risk Reduction (NADRR), a joint initiative of several NGOs in India.
- 17.
Different sets of principles and objectives of humanitarian actions: these actions interface with normative frames that prevail at the sites of implementation; negotiate socially between these different frames of reference to give meaning to their actions in practice, humanitarian actions must be more sensitive to the complexities of scale—how national policies are translated in the localities.
- 18.
Humanitarian assistance is the outcome of the political choices and social interactions of humanitarians and a large range of surrounding actors, institutions, and processes.
- 19.
Its impact on local conflict dynamics: where aid has large presence, humanitarian actions can be seen affecting the ordering process of society at large, changing people’s outlooks, altering power of constellations, transforming institutions and leaving footprints on spatial organizations.
- 20.
Based on a hazard-wise responsibility matrix that clearly defines roles and responsibilities of centre and state government agencies for each hazards, NDMP focuses largely on four aspects namely: inter-agency coordination; structural measures; non-structural measures; and capacity developments. Inter-agency coordination covers aspects of disaster governance such as response, warning, information, and data. Structural measures consider developing resilience based on securing and improving physical infrastructure. Non-structural measures rely on techno-legal regime that includes building codes, norms laws, rules, and guidelines. Finally, capacity development is defined in terms of training, curriculum development, awareness, and mock drills.
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Kushwaha, P. (2018). Conflicting Paradigms and the Danger Discourse: Re-thinking Indian Disaster Management Framework in the Post-tsunami Era. In: Reddy, S. (eds) The Asian Tsunami and Post-Disaster Aid. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0182-7_14
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