DEVELOPMENT PLANNING ON DISASTER Unit-4

EFFECT OF DISASTERS ON DEVELOPMENT

(A) Effects on Contemporary Development Loss or Destruction of crops which are vital for consumption/export Loss of livestock, through an outbreak of animal disease or rural wildfire Loss of Land due to salinity and inundation Damage to harbors, public buildings and other maritime facilities Damage to aircraft and airport facilities may pose serious constraints Damage of roads and bridges may curb important construction programs Loss of human lives which can never be compensated

(B) Effects on Long-Term Development :The first effect on long-term programs which arises from disaster impact is the economic and material loss, which is likely to cause delays in commencing and/or continuing such programs. A second major effect may be on the development planning process. Most countries nowadays work to planned periods of development, such as a series of 5-year national development plans. Disaster can seriously upset this sequence of planning and implementation by either disrupting the current plan or by making it difficult to forecast development progress

A third effect on national development may emanate from limitations which apply to normal international assistance programs. A funding nation/agency may agree to undertake a 3-year program on development. If a significant disaster strikes at the halfway stage of such a program, there will be obvious loss factors. A fourth effect is the reaction of development partners to the setbacks caused by disaster

FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTSThe term financial arrangements refer to the various arrangements made to finance all phases of disaster management namely mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery for effective and timely management of disasters at all levels. It can be classified into 3 types1. General Financing of Relief Expenditures2. Financing through Five Year Plans3. HPC/FC Suggestions of Financing

1. FINANCING OF RELIEF EXPENDITURES1.National Calamity Relief Fund (CRF)The Calamity Relief Fund is used for meeting the expenditure for providing immediate relief to the victims of cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood and hailstorm.2. National Calamity Contingency Fund (NCCF)National Calamity Contingency Fund (NCCF) scheme came into force with effect from the financial year 2000-01. NCCF is intended to cover natural calamities like cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood and hailstorm, which are considered to be of severe nature requiring expenditure by the State Government in excess of the balances available in its own Calamity Relief Fund.

2.FINANCING OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT THROUGH FIVE YEAR PLANS

In the five year plan, there are also a number of important ongoing schemes that specifically help reduce disaster vulnerability.Some of these are: Integrated Wasteland Development Programme (IWDP), Drought Prone Area Programme (DPAP), Desert Development Programme (DDP), Flood Control Programmes, National Afforestation & Ecodevelopment Programme (NA&ED), Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP), Crop Insurance, Sampurn Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY), Food for Work Scheme etc

3.FC SUGGESTIONS OF FINANCING

The HPC took an overview of all recent disasters (natural as well as manmade) in the country and identified common response and preparedness mechanisms on the basis of a series of consultations with a number of government, non-government, national and international agencies and media organizations. An important recommendation of the Committee was that at least 10 per cent of plan funds at the national, state and district levels be earmarked and apportioned for schemes which specifically address areas such as prevention, reduction, preparedness and mitigation of disasters

AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT The areas of improvement encompass suggestions to strengthen the existing system and also chart a few new paths in the system. (1) The existing disasters cause widespread havoc and therefore increase in the planned expenditure on disaster mitigation(improvement) and prevention measures in addition to the CRF is required. (2) The quantity and quality of training related to disaster risk reduction has to be improved. In this regard, a dire need is felt to have some important publications and audio-visual training modules related to disaster management.

(3) The documentation of disaster events of the country has to been done in a better manner. (4) There is also an urgent need for strengthening the disaster management pedagogy by creating disaster management faculties in universities, rural development institutes and other research organizations. (5) There is a need for establishment of control rooms at district levels with state of the art video teleconferencing facility. (6) There is also an increasing need for effective utilization of information, communication and space technologies in disaster mitigation and preparedness.

(7) The country should work more towards forging international cooperation in disaster management. (8) All development schemes in vulnerable areas should include a disaster mitigation analysis, whereby the feasibility of a project is assessed with respect to vulnerability of the area and the mitigation measures required for sustainability. This is in the lines of Environmental Impact Assessment. (9) The structural mitigation of hazards like construction of retrofitted individual disaster resistant structures for earthquake-resistant buildings or flood control structures like dykes, levees, etc. should be done in a massive scale.

(10) The role of insurance of structures in disaster-prone areas is a potentially important mitigation measure as it brings quality in the infrastructure & consciousness and a culture of safety by its insistence on following building codes, norms, guidelines, quality materials in construction etc.

COMMUNITY BASED DISASTER MANAGEMENT

DEFINITION CBDM is described by the International Institute for Disaster Management as an approach that involves direct participation of the people most likely to be exposed to hazards, in planning, decision making and operational activities at all levels of disaster management responsibility."

NEED FOR COMMUNITY BASED DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Members of a community are the immediate victims of adverse effects of a disaster. They have the best knowledge about their local surrounding in terms of the most disaster-prone areas They should be used for training because local residents may be hesitant to accept non-native people training programmes.

STRATEGIES FOR COMMUNITY BASED DISASTER MANAGEMENT PROGRAMMES

1.Community Risk Assessment 2. Disaster Management Orientation 3. Disaster Preparedness Training 4. Community Disaster Response Organisation 5. Counter Disaster Planning 6. Community Specific Warning Systems 7. Evacuation Plan and Drills 8. Emergency Response Training 9. Mitigation Plans 10. Documentation of indigenous knowledge

ROLE OF MEDIA IN DISASTER MANAGEMENT Mitigation phase, the media can show a series of programmes promoting the spirit of always preventing disasters than handle them. It can also reflect on new and old disasters and insist the public that mitigation is the best way around. Preparedness phase, television and radio normally play the major roles, disseminating warnings, weather information, and evacuation instructions and airing official bulletins. Response phase, emergency managers undertake the immediate, largely local effort to cope with the disaster as it unfolds. In this phase, the media become one of the most important sources of local and national information about the crisis.

4) Recovery phase of an emergency, the media can often provide documentation of the impact of a disaster or of a relief operation. Hour-by-hour coverage can be especially valuable in the absence of information from established formal channels.

EMERGENCY RESPONSE

DEFINITION Emergency Response activities are those activities that have to be done during and immediately following a disaster. They are designed to provide emergency assistance to victims of the event and reduce the likelihood of secondary damage.

NEED

Limit casualties, Improve hardship and suffering, Restore essential life support and community systems, Mitigate (improve) further damage and loss, and Provide the foundation for subsequent recovery.

ASPECTS OF EMERGENCY RESPONSE

The five basic aspects or stages of response to an emergency or disaster are (i) Notification/ Warning (ii) Immediate Public Safety (iii) Property Security (iv) Public Welfare (v) Restoration The main aspects of emergency response can be further split into the following aspects Search and Rescue To search for and rescue persons who may be trapped in buildings and under debris, isolated by floodwaters, or need rescuing for any other reason

Treatment and care of victims To dispose of the dead. To render first aid. To ensure identification tagging of casualties. To identify needs in terms of medical treatment, hospitalization and deal accordingly Evacuation (Migration) To determine whether persons need to be evacuated from the stricken area immediately, or whether such a requirement is likely to arise later. Shelter To provide shelter for victims whose housing has been destroyed or rendered unusable. This may involve: Making urgent repairs to some housing, Issuing tents and/or tarpaulins to provide means of temporary shelter, and Accommodating groups of homeless people in community buildings such as schools.

Food To organize and distribute food to disaster victims and emergency workers. To estimate damage to crops and food stocks. To estimate food reserves and available. Communications To reestablish essential radio, telephone, and mobile network links. Clearance and access To clear key roads, airfields, and ports to allow access for vehicles, aircraft, and shipping; also to prepare helicopter landing sites. Water and power supplies To reestablish water and power supplies, or to make temporary arrangements for them. To providing potable water after treating water in water-purifying equipment

Temporary subsistence supplies To provide supplies such as clothing, disaster kits, cooking utensils, and plastic sheeting, to enable victims to subsist temporarily in their own area, thus helping reduce the need for evacuation. Health and sanitation To take measures to safeguard the health of people in the stricken area and to maintain reasonable sanitation facilities. Public Information To keep the stricken community informed on what they should do, especially in terms of self-help, and on what action is on hand to help them. To prevent speculation and rumor concerning the future situation Security To maintain law and order, especially to prevent looting and unnecessary damage. Construction requirements To estimate high-priority building repair and replacement requirements.

PROBLEM AREAS IN EMERGENCY RESPONSE

Some of the major problem areas relevant to emergency response are listed below. The disaster manager should accept the possibility of these problem areas and be prepared for the same. Inadequate Preparedness Poor Warning Slow Activation of the Response System Effects of Impact and Crisis Pressure (Octopus Effect) Difficulties in Survey of Damage and Assessment of Needs Inaccurate and/or Incomplete Information from Survey Poor Information Management Inadequate Relief Commodities

Logistics Problems Poor Coordination of Response Operations Inadequate Public Awareness Dissatisfaction of the people Problems with the Media

EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTRE (EOC)

A well-equipped Emergency Operations Centre(EOC) or Emergency Control Room (ECR) is to be set up from which all emergency response activities will be executed. The need for directing the operations at the affected site, the need for coordination at the district headquarters and the need for interaction with the State Government to meet the conflicting demands at the time of disaster is the responsibility of the Relief Commissioner and his team at the EOC.

In the EOC/ECR, the Relief Commissioner and his team and to perform the following functions: Collection and compilation of information from the affected area Documenting information flow Decision making regarding resource management Allocation of task to different resource organization Supply of information to State Government