Classification and characteristics of disasters in India

CLASSIFICATION OF DISASTERS IN INDIA

The Indian subcontinent is among the world’s most disaster prone areas.

It is vulnerable to wind storms spawned in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, earthquakes caused by active crustal movement in the Himalayan mountains, floods brought by monsoons, and droughts in the country’s arid and semi-arid areas.

Most of the frequently occurring disasters in India fall in two categories.

1. Hydro-meteorological disasters and 
2. Geological disasters

Hydro-meteorology refers to the transfer of water and energy between land surface and the lower atmosphere. 

Examples of hydro-meteorological disasters are:

1. Floods
2. Tropical cyclones
3. Drought and
4. Desertification

Geological disasters are also called geophysical disasters that originate from the solid Earth. They are interchangeably used with the term geophysical hazard. Examples of geological hazards are:

1. Earthquakes
2. Mass movements and
3. Volcanic activity

Other types of disasters are:

1. Meteorological disasters are short lived and caused by micro to meso-scale extreme weather and atmospheric conditions that last from minutes to days for example:
1. Extreme temperature
2. Fog
3. Storm
2. Hydrological disasters that are caused by occurrence, movement and distribution of surface and sub-surface freshwater and saltwater.
3. Climatological disasters are caused by long-lived meso to macro-scale atmospheric processes ranging from intra-seasonal to multi-decadal climate variability for example:
1. Drought
2. Glacial lake outburst
3. Wildfires
4. Biological hazards are caused due to exposure to living organisms and their toxic substances (Ex: venom)
5. Extraterrestrial hazards caused by extra-terrestrial objects as they pass near the Earth, strike the Earth and affect the Earth's Ionosphere, magnetosphere and thermosphere. Ex: Meteorites and asteroids. Another example of extraterrestrial hazard is "Magnetic storms" that are caused by solar flares from the sun or Coronal Mass Ejections (CME). This causes disruption of communication and navigation systems, damage to communication satellites, power outages, radiation poisoning in human beings leading to chromosomal damage, cancer and other health problems.

Characteristics of disasters in India

The most common natural disasters occurring in India are:

1. Earthquakes
2. Cyclones
3. Floods and
4. Famine

The characteristics of the above listed natural disasters are discussed  with regard to the following parameters.

1. Predictability
2. Initial lethality
3. Scope and
4. Onset delay

Among the above listed natural disasters, Earthquakes cannot be predicted while cyclones can be predicted with reasonable accuracy. However, cyclones give a very small window of opportunity (time) to people so that they can escape. Floods can be predicted well in advance so that necessary measures for mitigation can be put into place thereby preventing loss to life and property. Famine is a natural disaster that can be predicted accurately with modern computer modelling and simulation techniques.

Owing to the destructive nature of Earthquakes, it is considered to have the highest initial lethality among the natural hazards being discussed. Next comes cyclones followed by floods. Cyclones have a higher destructive potential than floods as they comprise of very fast winds that move in a circular fashion destroying everything coming in their way. A flood is defined as land that is normally dry being inundated due to excessive rains leading to disruption in daily activities. 

Earthquakes affect a relatively small region and hence the scope of damage caused is relatively low. Cyclones occur mainly along coasts. Hence, the scope of the damage caused is greater than Earthquakes. Floods occur over a large area and hence they have a relatively greater scope for damage than cyclones. A famine refers to an extended period of drought. Lack of water for an extended duration causes severe destruction in the community

The term 'on-set delay' refers to the time lag before the occurrence of a disaster. This short time should be used as a window of opportunity to rescue people from the potentially dangerous situation. As Earthquakes occur at any random instant, the on-set delay is low in this case. In case of cyclones, the on-set delay is greater than that mentioned in the case of Earthquake as they can be predicted a few days in advance with the help of satellite images. Floods have greater on-set delay (except in case of FLASH FLOODS) than cyclones as flooding of any area takes place gradually and provides sufficient time for evacuation operations. Famine is a disaster with the greatest 
on-set delay as it develops extremely slowly and provides several indicators well in advance.

Classification, causes and impacts of drought

DROUGHT

Drought is a weather-related natural disaster. It affects vast regions for months or years. It has an impact on food production and it reduces life expectancy and the economic performance of large regions or entire countries.
Drought is a recurrent feature of the climate. It occurs in virtually all climatic zones, and its characteristics vary significantly among regions. Drought differs from aridity in that drought is temporary; aridity is a permanent characteristic of regions with low rainfall.
Drought is a gradual hazard of nature that has a cumulative effect. It is related to a deficiency of precipitation over an extended period of time, usually for a season or more. This deficiency results in a water shortage for some activity, group, or environmental sector. Drought is also related to the timing of precipitation. Other climatic factors such as high temperature, high wind, and low relative humidity are often associated with drought.

Drought may be defined conceptually or operationally.
Conceptually, drought may be defined as a protracted period of deficient precipitation that causes extensive damage to crops, resulting in loss of yield.
Operational definition of drought helps to identify the beginning, end and degree of severity. In this case, the beginning of drought is identified by considering the degree of departure from the precipitation average over a specified time period. Usually, a historical average is considered as a threshold to identify the beginning of the drought. Operational definitions are used to analyze drought frequency, severity, and duration for a given historical period. A climatology of drought for a given region provides a greater understanding of its characteristics and the probability of recurrence at various levels of severity. Information of this type is beneficial in the formulation of mitigation strategies.

Types of drought

1. Meteorological drought: Meteorological drought is defined on the basis of the degree of dryness, in comparison to a normal or average amount, and the duration of the dry period. Definitions of meteorological drought must be region-specific, since the atmospheric conditions that result in deficiencies of precipitation are highly region-specific. Data sets required to assess meteorological drought are daily rainfall information, temperature, humidity, wind velocity and pressure, and evaporation.
2. Agricultural drought: Agricultural drought links various characteristics of meteorological drought to agricultural impacts, focusing on precipitation shortages, differences between actual and potential evapo-transpiration, soil-water deficits, reduced groundwater or reservoir levels, and so on. Plant water demand depends on prevailing weather conditions, biological characteristics of the specific plant, its stage of growth, and the physical and biological properties of the soil. A good definition of agricultural drought should account for the susceptibility of crops during different stages of crop development. Deficient topsoil moisture at planting may hinder germination, leading to low plant populations per hectare and a reduction of yield. Data sets required to assess agricultural drought are soil texture, fertility and soil moisture, crop type and area, crop water requirements, pests and climate.
3. Hydrological drought: Hydrological drought refers to a persistently low discharge and/or volume of water in streams and reservoirs, lasting months or years. Hydrological drought is a natural phenomenon, but it may be exacerbated by human activities. Hydrological droughts are usually related to meteorological droughts, and their recurrence interval varies accordingly. Changes in land use and land degradation can affect the magnitude and frequency of hydrological droughts.Data sets required to assess hydrological drought are surface-water area and volume, surface runoff, streamflow measurements, infiltration, water-table fluctuations, and aquifer parameters.
4. Socioeconomic drought: Socioeconomic definitions of drought associate the supply and demand of some economic good with elements of meteorological, hydrological, and agricultural drought. It differs from the other types of drought in the sense that its occurrence depends on the processes of supply and demand. The supply of many economic goods, such as water, forage, food grains, fish, and hydroelectric power, depends on the weather. Due to the natural variability of climate, water supply is ample in some years, but insufficient to meet human and environmental needs in other years.   Socioeconomic drought occurs when the demand for an economic good exceeds the supply as a result of a weather-related shortfall in water supply.Data sets required to assess socioeconomic drought are human and animal population and growth rate, water and fodder requirements, severity of crop failure, and industry type and water requirements

 Causes of drought

1. Land and water temperatures cause drought. As overall temperatures increase more water evaporates and severe weather conditions increase. Landscapes and crops need more water to survive and overall the demand for water increases.
2. Air circulation and weather patterns also cause drought. Key events like     El-Nino or La-Nina help contribute to drought in areas
3. Soil moisture levels also contribute to drought. When soil moisture is depleted there is less evaporation of water to create clouds. Surface temperatures rise, more water is needed and less is available which contributes to a more severe drought.
4. Drought can also be a supply and demand of water issue. When a region is growing rapidly the demand for water can exceed the supply. When weather conditions, temperatures or air patterns push a region toward a drought the demand for water by people can offset or worsen the situation depending on how the region reacts. Excessive irrigation contributes to a drought. 
5. If the timing of water doesn’t match the agricultural season there may be too much water when it is not needed it and too little when it is actually needed. Proper storage and collection of water is key to counter balancing this cycle and clearly in the scope of human management.

Impact of drought
Drought produces a complex web of impacts that spans many sectors of the economy and extends beyond the area experiencing physical drought. This complexity exists because water is integral to society's ability to produce goods and provide services.
Impacts are commonly referred to as direct and indirect.
Direct impacts include:

1. reduced crop, range land, and forest productivity, 
2. increased fire hazard
3. reduced water levels
4. increased livestock and wildlife mortality rates and 
5. damage to wildlife and fish habitat.

The direct impacts influence:

1. crop productivity
2.  income for farmers and agribusiness
3. prices for food and timber
4. unemployment
5. exemption to farmers who borrowed heavily from banks
6. migration

Types of drought impacts are:

1. Economic impacts: The economic impacts of drought are listed below:

1. Droughts destroy growth of crops resulting in poor yields and poor quality crops. Excessive funds are used to provide sufficient water to crops
2. Death of livestock due to lack of food and water
3. Reduced timber production due to wild fires, low productivity of forest land and  and loss of young trees.
4. Loss of fishery production due to damaged fish habitat due to drought.
5. Loss of recreation and tourism
6. Loss to industries manufacturing farm equipment.
7. Loss to hydroelectric power generating companies
8. Loss of revenue to water supply companies
9. Loss to inland river navigation based transport companies
10. Increased cost due to import of food.

      2. Environmental impacts: The environmental impacts of drought are listed below:

1. Environmental impact includes forest fires, soil erosion, damage to life forms and their habitat coupled with decline in air and water quality.
2. Wildlife may migrate to other areas.
3. Increased stress to endangered species
4. Decrease in water level in reservoirs, ponds, lakes and loss of wetlands
5. Dry top soil becomes prone to erosion by wind leading to reduced soil quality and low biological productivity of landscape.
6. Loss of biodiversity and extinction of species

      3.Social impacts: The social impacts of drought are listed below:

1. Disputes due to water shortage and lifestyle changes
2. Revenue loss due to drought causes physical, mental stresses that contribute to loss of human lives due to suicidal tendencies
3. Reduction in recreational activities
4. Mass migration of communities
5. Reduced fire fighting ability
6. Sustenance on basic food leading to malnutrition and high infant mortality rate
7. Steeply declining quality of life in the affected community

Differential impacts of disasters

DIFFERENTIAL IMPACTS OF DISASTERS

The phrase, 'differential impacts of disasters' is discussed below:

• Susceptibility to disasters is governed by the following factors:

1. If the population of the community consists of primarily young people, the impact would be low. Young people are generally healthy, active and can respond well to any event with negative consequences. 
2. Children, the elderly and women in the community are extremely susceptible and require assistance to handle any negative situation.
3. At times, religion also plays a significant role on the impact of a disaster.
4. Education plays a major role during disasters and the educated prove to be an extremely valuable resource as they respond to any emergency with the knowledge previously gained. Differential impacts of disasters are clearly seen in this case.
5. Economic standing of people plays a clear role in case of disasters. While the affluent can effectively respond to a disaster on their own, the economically weaker sections depend on the government for their evacuation, resettlement and rehabilitation.
6. Disasters and poverty are inextricably linked. The poor are the worst affected during any disaster.

Change in demographic patterns combined with mounting disaster losses have brought a focus on the manner in which changing demographic patterns shape vulnerability and resiliency of social systems.

Global trends in disasters

GLOBAL TRENDS IN DISASTERS

Data and statistics are important in understanding the impacts and costs of disasters. Systematic disaster data collection and analysis can be used to inform policy decisions to help reduce disaster risks and build resilience. The term, "Global Trends" refers to a change in the situation that affects many countries of the world. Generally, the world has been witness to an increasing in the number of disasters as listed below-

1. According to statistics from United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), the number of disasters has increased significantly in recent years. This has been possible due to accurate recordings and better communication technology.
2. Population growth has led to more people living in potentially hazardous locations.
3. Countries in the developing world are more vulnerable because of their low coping capacity.
4. The number of Earthquake events has not increased in the past decades and is fairly stable.
5. An increase in number of floods and wind storms has is seen. This may be due to global environmental changes or climate change.
6. Around fifty to seventy volcanoes erupt every year. Eruptions of a very large magnitude are rare. The trend also shows an increase in the number of people affected indicating the growing population density in the developing world.
7. An increase in the hurricane activity in the Atlantic has been linked to global warming.
8. It has also been proposed that a natural cycle in the Atlantic called Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) to explain the high number of major hurricanes.
9. The USA has a long term trend of falling hurricane related deaths and increasing economic costs
10. People living along the coast are at risk from hurricanes.
11. Increasing coastal populations causes increased risk from hurricanes
12. Scientists believe that increased global warming will lead to more unpredictable weather and an increase in weather events.
13. Hazards associated with El-Nino are well known such as drought in Indonesia and flood in Peru
14. Summer of 2007 witnessed wide spread flooding in the UK. This was linked to La Nina conditions in the pacific.

However, with respect to specific disasters, the global trend observed is discussed below

Urban disasters

The term 'urban disaster' is misleading. It could refer to a natural disaster like flood or earthquake occurring in an urban area or man-made disaster like overpopulation in an urban area or an industrial accident like an explosion or chemical leakage seiously affecting an urban area. Whichever the case, the impact is loss of economy, loss of jobs and destruction of natural resources. There has been a steady increase in the number of urban disasters leading to destruction of infrastructure. Unplanned and unscientific methods of mining and construction has led to sporadic but steady increase in number of Earthquakes, landslides and land subsidence incidents throughout the world. Overpopulation has led to conflicts and wars between countries over natural resources. Global environmental issues like global warming and sea level rise are primarily affecting urban areas resulting in them being termed as urban disasters. Spread of urban areas causing 'urban sprawl' and 'heat island effect' are primarily environmental issues of concern and if these issues are not addresses in time before they will actually become 'urban disasters'. Hence the global trend concerning urban disasters is steadily increasing.

Pandemics 
 A pandemic is defined as a sudden outbreak that very widespread and affects a whole region, a continent, or world due to a susceptible population. A pandemic causes a high degree of mortality. Ex- small pox and tubeculosis. A pandemic is basically a global epidmeic. It is an epidemic that spreads to more than one continent. A pandemic is a global disease outbreak. HIV/AIDS is an example of one of the most destructive global pandemics in history. Influenza pandemics occurred in-
-Spanish influenza (1918) killed 40 - 50 million people
-Asian influenza (1957) killed 2 million people
-Hongkong influenza (1968) killed 1 million people
Evidence suggests that the possibility of pansemics has increased over the past century because of increased global travel and integration, urbanization, changes in land use and greater exploitation of the natural environment. It is predicted that these trends will continue and intensify in future. A few pandemics in the recent past were malaria, HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, SARS in 2003, Ebola virus in 2013 and avian flu pandemics has seen sporadic outbursts in the past. Pandemics appear to be increasing in frequency because of increasing emergence of viral disease from animals. Some geographic regions with a high risk of origin  of a pandemic (sprak risk) lack in preparedness to handle the disease. Influenza is the most likely pathogen to cause a severe pandemic.

Global emergencies 
The term 'complex emergency' has no clear definition. It is often the result of a combination of political instability, conflict, social inequity, underlying poverty and violence. Complex emergencies are essentially political in nature and erode cultural, civil, political and economic stabilities of society. They can be worsened by natural hazards. Cities in the developing world exhibit the characteristics of complex emergencies. Complex emergencies have been defined as crises resulting from a combination of instabilities interacting with each other. Complex emergencies combine internal conflict with large scale displacement of people, mass famine and food shortage and fragile or failing economic, political and social institutions. Complex emergencies display four main types of instability-

1. Political instability
2. Economic instability
3. Environmental instability and
4. Demographic instability

Complex emergencies are present virtually in every part of the world. However, they are prevelant in areas without proper governance, poverty, lack of education in the community, unhygenic living conditions, etc.
Armed conflicts have been a major cause of disruption in the last decade. There has been an increase in the number of political conflicts has increased from 2006 to 2016 as per statistics published by United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human Affairs (UNOCHA).

Climate change 
Climate change refers to a change in the global or regional climate patterns.
A direct relationship exists between climate and health. Climate change will be responsible for almost 250,000 additional deaths due to malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea and heat stress. Climate change has also contributed to increased frequency of natural disasters. The current warming trend is of the human activity since the mid 20th century. The increased levels of green house gases has caused the Earth to warm up in response. The current warming is occurring around ten times faster than the rate of ice-age-recovery warming. Rapid climate change is evident through
-Global temperature rise
-Warming oceans
-Shrinking ice sheets
-Glacial retreat
-Decreased snow cover
-Sea level rise
-Declining arctic sea ice
-Extreme events and
-Ocean acidification
Trends show an increase in warming of the world's climate. This temperature will not be uniform across the globe over time. This implies a shorter and milder winter followed by longer and hotter summers. This adversely affects agriculture and ecosystems. Climate change also results in an increase in frequncy and duration in rainfall. Increasing frequency and intensity of heat waves result in drought. Climate change also causes frequent intense storms (cyclone).

Cyclones and floods

CYCLONES AND FLOODS

CYCLONE:

1. A cyclone begins when air heated by the sun rises very swiftly which creates areas of very low pressure.
2. As the warm air rises, it becomes loaded with moisture and condenses into clouds.
3. Cool air moves in quickly to fill the void but because of the constant rotation of the Earth, the air is bent inwards and then spirals upwards with great force.
4. At the center of the storm is a calm, cloudless area called the 'eye' where there is no rain and winds are light.
5. The cyclone is sustained by a steady flow of moist air.
6. Winds around the 'eye' reach speeds upto 200 kmph and a fully developed cyclone pumps two million tonnes of air per second.
7. Formation of a cyclone depends on conditions mostly found in the tropical convergence zone (ocean surface temperature > 26C, humid unstable atmosphere. 

Causes of floods

FLOODS

 

Among all the disasters that occur in India, floods are the most commonly occurring natural disasters due to the irregularities of the Indian monsoon. About 75% of the annual rainfall in India is concentrated in 3-4 months of the monsoon season. As a result there is very heavy discharge from rivers during the period causing widespread floods.

Flood is a state of higher water level along a river channel or on coast leading to inundation of land that is not normally submerge. Flood therefore is a natural disaster which causes considerable damage to the crops, livestock and human life.

The major floods are mainly caused in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna basin which carries 60% of the total river flow of the country. According to National Flood Commission about 40 million hectares of land area is prone to flood in the country. On an average, the area affected by floods annually is about 8 million hectare, out of which the cropped area affected is about 3.7 million hectare.

Floods are caused by natural, ecological or anthropogenic factors either individually or as a combined result. The various causes of floods in India are as follows:

• Heavy precipitation: Rainfall of about 15 cm or more in single day may be beyond the carrying capacity of the river and this causes the spilling of river over natural banks. Areas affected include west coast of Western Ghats, Assam and sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Indo-Gangetic plains

• Rise in river bed: Due to large gradients the Himalayan rivers carry a large amount of silt and sand which are ultimately deposited in the catchment area, and on the river bed. Siltation reduces the carrying capacity of river.

• Meandering tendency of river-flow: In the flat terrain rivers have the tendency to meander or change the course within a specific boundary. Lower reaches of Gangetic plains and Brahmaputra.
   
• Cyclones: Tropical cyclones accompanied by strong winds, high tidal bores causing inundation of coastal regions. Floods due to cyclone are common in the East coast of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal.
   
• Silting in Delta areas: Sea tides deposit silt on the river-mouths and discharge channels leading to steady deterioration of their discharge capacity.
   
• Obstruction of free-flow of rivers: Embankments, railways, canals etc. obstruct the free flow of rivers leading to flood.
   
• Inadequate drainage arrangement: After introduction of irrigation in some areas, the sub-soil water table rises fast unless adequate arrangement are simultaneously made for both surface and sub-surface drainage. Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
   
• Earthquake and Landslide: These natural disaster change the river course and consequently cause flood.
   
• Deforestation: Deforestation causes the acceleration of runoff and lowering of infiltration. Deforestation of hill slopes leads to greater run-off which raises the water level in rivers. Western Ghats, Siwaliks and Chotanagpur plateau region.
   
• Cloud burst: Cloud bursts leads to high amount of rainfall within a short time leading to flash floods. Flash flood generally occurs in Himalayan region.
  
  
  A sudden violent flood caused by exceptionally heavy rain in a normally dry valley in a semi-arid area, the torrential stream sometimes being laden with debris. Flash floods are often caused by:
  
  
  1. Cloud burst / heavy downpour in the mountain areas 
  2. Rapid melting of snow and ice in mountain areas. 
  3. Glacial lake outburst in the high Himalayas and 
  4.  Failure of landslide / debris flow dams in high and rugged mountain areas.
   

The flood prone regions of India are listed below:

• The basin of the Himalayan rivers covering a part of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. The Kosi and the Damodar are the main rivers causing floods.
• The North-Western river basin covering the states of Jammu and Kashmir, parts of Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. The Jhelum, the Sutluj, the Beas the Ravi and the Chenab are the rivers causing floods in this region. 
• The Central and Peninsular river basins covering Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, contain the Narmada the Tapi, the Chambal and the Mahanadi. Heavy floods occur in the Godavari, the Krishna the Pennar and the Cauvery at long intervals and flood problem is generally serious.

Road disasters in India

Definition of traffic accident
A traffic accident, motor vehicle collision, motor vehicle accident, car accident, automobile accident, road traffic collision, road traffic accident, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle,
pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other stationary obstruction, such as a tree or utility pole. Traffic collisions may result in injury, death, vehicle damage, and property damage.

Causes
A number of factors contribute to a traffic accident. For example:

1. vehicle design, 
2. speed of operation, 
3. road design, 
4. road environment,
5. driver skill and/or impairment, and 
6. driver behaviour.

Types of traffic accidents
Traffic collisions can be classified by type of collision. For example,

1. head-on, 
2. road departure, 
3. rear-end, 
4. side collisions, and
5. rollovers.

The main elements of good driving are:

1. controlling a car including a good awareness of the car's size and capabilities
2. reading and reacting to road conditions, weather, road signs and the environment and
3. alertness, reading and anticipating the behavior of other drivers.

In order to minimise accidents, several measures have been taken-up including:

1. law enforcement policies (drink-driving laws, setting of speed limits, and speed enforcement systems such as speed cameras & use of seat belts)

Effects
Impacts due to traffic accidents:

1. Loss of life or injury or life-long disability
2. Loss of property
3. Psychological stress (PTSD)
4. Increased insurance costs
5. Associated social discrimination

Approaches to Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR)

APPROACHES TO DISASTER RISK REDUCTION

1. Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) is a reactive approach to disasters that increasingly focuses on preparedness and response. 
2.  Relevant legislation for mainstreaming DRR lies in including land-use controls and building codes into development activities. 
3. With DRR there has been a shift in policies from disaster management to disaster risk management.

           iv.      DRR is the systematic process of using administrative decisions, organizational skills, operational skills and capacities to implement policies, strategies and coping capacities of the society and community.

             v.      DRR can be achieved by:

a.      Institutionalizing local disaster risk reduction and management office

b.      Establishing an Early Warning System (EWS)

c.       Formulation of communication protocols

d.      Formulation of evacuation procedures at all levels

e.      Organizing local disaster risk reduction committees defining functional roles and responsibilities of members and task units

f.        Establishing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

g.       Creating awareness in the community through trainings and seminars.

h.      Integration of Disaster Risk Reduction into Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) and land use planning

i.         Integration of hazard, risk and vulnerability assessment into the development plan

j.        Introduction of ‘cluster approach’ in recovery program

k.       Maintain a good working relationship with warning agencies and local media

l.         Install warning instruments at selected areas prone to disasters

m.    Updating hazard profile of all municipalities to analyse data on human induced disasters for public safety studies

n.      Ensure accurate flow of information before, during and after disasters through an effective communication system.

           vi.      The process of DRR involves analysis of past events to learn lessons enabling adoption of measures and utilize them in future thereby successfully reducing risk to disaster.

          vii.      However, if lessons learnt from past events are archived, forgotten and ignored; the vulnerability of the community is maintained and a repeat occurrence of a disaster with worse consequences can be easily predicted.

        viii.      The following steps are to be followed in sequence for DRR

a.       Identify, characterize and assess threats

b.      Assess the vulnerability of critical assets to specific threats

c.       Determine the risks

d.      Identify ways to reduce those risks

e.      Prioritize risk reduction measures based on a strategy

           ix.      Combination of hazard and vulnerability results in the materialization of a major risk. Whenever a major risk is not managed efficiently, it results in a disaster

Once risks have been identified and assessed, all techniques to manage the risk, fall in one or more of these four major categories:

         i.            Avoidance (eliminate, withdraw from risk area)

       ii.            Reduction (Optimize resources to mitigate effects)

      iii.            Sharing (risk transfer or enrollment in insurance)

     iv.            Retention (accept, plan – contingency plans, evacuation plans, ICS and provision of budget)

Comprehensive DRM involves stakeholders at:

·         All levels of government

·         Private sector

·         Local communities and

·         Civil society for:

o   Implementation of legislative framework

o   Coordination

o   Monitoring mechanism and arrangements

·         Individual disaster risk reduction actions and programs within the comprehensive DRM and not be treated as discrete, individual measures.

·         Individual line agencies and local governments are legally responsible for implementing disaster management

The guiding principles for DRR are:

         i.            Institutional and not individual oriented

       ii.            Providing a permanent solution

      iii.            Preemptive evacuation is better than rescue

DRR aims to achieve a fundamental shift from reactive to proactive approach towards disasters

The main objective of disaster preparedness is to empower the community with necessary skills to cope with the negative effects of a disaster.

The state of readiness determines the extent to which potential casualties and damages can be reduced.

Interrelationship between disasters and development

Disaster Risk Management (DRM) in India

Impact of Drought - social, economic, political, environment, health and psychosocial

IMPACTS OF DROUGHT

Social impact  

The social impacts of droughts are most felt, as they directly involve people in a community and their families.
Health has a direct link to the water supply in any community. Clean water for drinking, cleaning and sanitation help society prevent and manage diseases. Hunger, malnutrition, anaemia and mortality are the indirect effects of drought. Droughts cause low food production. Food nutrition also is a problem, and that leads to vulnerability diseases/illness and deaths. Droughts mean less water avaiable, resulting in lesser dilution resulting in increased concentration of chemicals, nutrients and reduced dissolved content of water. Droughts result in poor living conditions forcing people to migrate to places with better living conditions. When several of the young and working population the region is termed drought vulnerable. Anxiety, stress and depression have a negative effect on people and this results in low esteem and feeling of social isolation.

Economic impact

Economic impacts of drought involve loss of money due to:

1. Additional money required to irrigate crops by spending money to drill new wells or purchase water in tankers from far away places.
2. Low crop yield
3. Farm equipment will not be purchased from businesses and industries
4. Drought implies drier conditions and more bush fires that destroy farms, properties, forests and trees. The
5. government uses additional resources to fight fires and provide emergency services
6. Energy industries lose money because they cannot meet energy demands of the region.

 

Political impact

Droughts have political impacts too. A drought can be considered as an event in hydroligic time as well as political time. A head of a state declares a drought emergency seeking help from the centre. State and central governments come to the rescue of the drought affected region, request the citizens to conserve water to tide over the crisis. At water, the central government acts as an arbiter between regions concerning water allocated to them. These are the recurring political impacts of drought. Drought politics stimulates political and policy change. Drought is a classic example of a "focusing event" that creates a window of opportunity for policy change. Most politicians use drought to push forward their policies and make their preferred political change.

Environmental impact

Soil moisture is important for breakdown of organic matter. Droughts lower the quality of soils, because there is less organic activity, increased wind erosion, and soil insects or organisms perish.
Water bodies (lakes, creeks, ponds and lagoons) are completely dry and cause the death of water animals.
Droughts also affect entire food chains and ecosystems.
Droughts worsen the process of desertification and eliminate any chances of the land to recover
The health and quality of freshwater biomes (ponds, lakes, streams and rivers) are affected and the living organisms are endangered.

Impact on health of community

 Droughts have far reaching effects beyond the farm, including many effects on human health. The potential health effects that occur with drought are:
Droughts can reduce air quality and compromise the health of people due to  dry soils. Wildfires increase the amount of airborne particles, such as pollen and smoke. These particles can irritate the airways and worsen chronic respiratory illnesses, such as asthma while increasing the risk of respiratory infections, such as bacterial pneumonia.
Drought increases the risk of people catching the fungal infection valley fever. The disease is transmitted when spores in the soil become airborne and are inhaled. The condition causes a range of symptoms, including fever, chest pain, coughing, rash, and muscle aches.
In a drought, people may feel the need to reduce hand washing and other hygiene practices to conserve water leading to an increased spread of infectious diseases, such as acute respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses.
People whose livelihood is directly tied to the water supply like farmers, horticulturalists and nursery owners may suffer adverse mental health effects during a drought.
Financial-related stress and worry can cause depression, anxiety, and a host of other mental and behavioral health conditions. For example, an increased rate of suicide among people living in farming areas during droughts.
Reduced rainfall can limit the growing season for farmers, and further reduce crop yields by creating ideal conditions for insect infestations that damage crops. This can bring increases in food prices, or shortages of certain foods, potentially leading to malnutrition.
In a drought, farmers may also use recycled water to irrigate fields.  If the process is not properly monitored, crops can become contaminated with pathogens such as salmonella and E. coli
Increase in diseases transmitted by insects, such as West Nile virus, which is spread by mosquitoes, are linked with drought, the CDC says. Drought can shrink bodies of water, and cause water to become stagnant, providing breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

 

Psychosocial impacts of drought on people in the affected community

Studies on flooding and psychological well-being after flooding indicate that although the major stressor of flooding is the disaster itself, the secondary stressors of rebuilding and returning to normal life can pose substantial social and mental health problems for months or years afterward. The problems range from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to clinical depression and anxiety to substance abuse to relationship problems. However, if the affected person believes that they can control their feelings, they will be better prepared mentally to deal with the aftermath of the disaster. It has been found that women who were faced the disaster were likely to suffer from depression and anxiety while men were likely to exhibit violent behaviour and alcohol abuse.
In general, it was observed that there are six typical initial responses:

1. fear
2. numbness and shock
3. confusion
4. difficulty in making decisions
5. desire for information
6. seeking help for oneself and family and helpfulness to others.

Delayed responses, which can surface months later, include:

1. changes in appetite
2. headaches
3. inability to sleep
4. anger
5. suspicion
6. apathy
7. depression
8. withdrawal from family and friends
9. disillusionment with official help and
10. guilt at not having been able to prevent or avoid the emergency