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Previous Questions
(GS-3)
1. Describe various measures taken in India for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) before and
after signing ‘Sendai Framework for DRR (2015-2030)’. How is this framework different
from ‘Hyogo Framework for Action, 2005’? (250 Words, 15 Marks) (2018)
2. On December 2004, Tsunami brought havoc on 14 countries including India. Discuss the
factors responsible for occurrence of Tsunami and its effects on life and economy. In the
light of guidelines of NDMA (2010) describe the mechanisms for preparedness to reduce
the risk during such events. (2017)
3. The frequency of urban floods due to high intensity rainfall is increasing over the years.
Discussing the reasons for urban floods, highlight the mechanisms for preparedness to
reduce the risk during such events.(2016)
4. With reference to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) guidelines, discuss
the measures to be adopted to mitigate the impact of the recent incidents of cloudbursts
in many places of Uttarakhand. (2016)
5. The frequency of earthquakes appears to have increased in the Indian subcontinent.
However, India’s preparedness for mitigating their impact has significant gaps. Discuss
various aspects.(2015)
6. Drought has been recognized as a disaster in view of its party expense, temporal
duration, slow onset and lasting effect on various vulnerable sections. With a focus on
the September 2010 guidelines from the National disaster management authority,
discuss the mechanism for preparedness to deal with the El Nino and La Nina fallouts in
India (2014).
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
7. How important are vulnerability and risk assessment for pre-disaster management. As
an administrator, what are key areas that you would focus in a disaster management?
(2013)
1. In what way can floods be converted to sustainable source of irrigation and all weather
inland navigation in India? (2017 GS-1)
2. “The Himalayas are highly prone to landslides.” Discuss the causes and suggest suitable
measures of mitigation. (2016 GS-1)
3. Major cities of India are becoming more vulnerable to flood conditions. Discuss. (2016)
4. Bring out the causes for more frequent landslides in the Himalayas than in Western
Ghats. (2013)
1. There is a disaster prone state having frequent landslides, forest fires, cloudbursts, flash
floods and earthquakes, etc. Some of these are seasonal and often unpredictable. The
magnitude of the disaster is always unanticipated. During one of the seasons a cloudburst
caused a devastating floods and landslides leading to high casualties. There was major
damage to infrastructure like roads, bridges and power generating units. This led to more
than 100000 pilgrims, tourist and other locals trapped across different routes and locations.
The people trapped in your area of responsibility includes senior citizens, patients in
hospitals, women and children, hiker, tourist, ruling parties, regional presidents along with
his family, additional chief secretary of the neighboring state and prisoners in jail.
As a civil services officer of the state, what would be the order in which you would rescue
these people and why? Give Justifications (20 Marks) (200 Words) (2015 GS-4)
Essay:
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Hazard:
Hazard is a phenomenon when there is a potential for occurrence of an event. This event
might be a natural event (ex: earthquake) or a man made event (ex: chemical accident).
When Hazard (potential threat) becomes reality and causes widespread losses to humans,
environment then that event is called a disaster.
Vulnerability:
Based on differential setting of the people and place the same hazard leads to differential
impact.
3. Geographical (Ex: Coastal areas are prone to Cyclones compared to interior areas)
Risk:
When vulnerable area is exposed to a hazard (potential event), that region is prone to huge
damages. This is known as risk.
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1. Hazard
2. Vulnerability
3. Exposure
In case of natural hazard, let’s say Cyclone, we cannot prevent the hazard itself. Only we
can reduce the vulnerability to the hazard.
Preparedness:
2. Governments
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3. Voluntary agencies
4. Private Agencies
Preparedness is through
2. Capability training
Mitigation:
Mitigation is lessening and reducing the impact of hazards and the related disasters.
2. Non structural measures- Any measure not involving physical construction. It involves use
of knowledge, practice or agreement to reduce the risk. These measures are in particular
through policies and laws, public awareness, training and education.
Disaster:
“Disaster is a physical event, phenomenon or a human activity that leads to serious
disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human,
material, economic and environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of
the community or society to cope using its own resources.” – UNISDR (United Nations
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Types of Disasters
Every Disaster is unique in terms of the local socio-environmental factors that control it. The
social response it generates and the way each social group negotiates with it.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
All these contribute to a situation where disasters seriously threaten India’s economy, its
population and sustainable development.
Existing framework:
Earlier disaster management was focussing only on the rescue and rehabilitation. For this
purpose there were certain mechanisms established at the Central and State levels.
National Crisis Management Committee was established. This committee deals with the
coordination during the crisis or disasters.
Cabinet Committee on Security evaluated the threats from the National Security
perspective.
State Crisis Management Committee was established. This committee coordinates different
departments and district committees during disasters.
There were two types of funds proposed by the Finance Commissions operating at central
and State levels.
1. Calamity Response Fund (State level fund. The amount is recommended by the Finance
Commission.)
However, there were no established institutional structures to deal with the disasters
comprehensively.
So, in 1999, GoI has established a High Powered Committee (HPC) headed by J.C. Pant to
recommend the institutional mechanism to deal with disasters.
After of few months of appointing this Committee India has experienced a huge scale
disaster- Odisha Super Cyclone 1999.This has led to huge deaths numbering 10,000 and
huge economic losses.
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By the time the HPC recommendations are considered, India has faced another crisis-
Gujarat Earthquake (Bhuj Earthquake, 2001). Here also India experienced huge number of
deaths and economic losses.
So, the Central Government has reconstituted the HPC and converted it to Working Group
on Disaster Management.
The final call in this is Indian Ocean Tsunami (2004) that wrecked havoc in the Indian
Eastern Coast. This event has exposed the weakness in the existing institutional structures
to deal with disasters. Responsibility fixing became very difficult without the established
institutional Structures.
Government after discussing the Working Group report has quickly enacted the Disaster
Management Act, 2005.
This act has provided for institutional mechanism at centre, state and district level.
According to the revised UNISDR(United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Risk
Reduction- Office of UN that deals with disaster risk reduction internationally) terminology
(2016),
Disaster Management (DM) is “the organization, planning and application of measures
preparing for, responding to and recovering from disasters”.
Disaster Risk Management (DRM) is “the application of disaster risk reduction policies
and strategies to prevent new disaster risk, reduce existing disaster risk and manage
residual risk, contributing to the Pre Disaster Preparedness Mitigation: Prevention &
Risk Reduction Response Recovery Post Disaster strengthening of resilience and
reduction of disaster losses” (UNISDR 2016)
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Disaster event:
It is the real time event of hazard (potential event) that causes damage to the society or
community- socioeconomically, physically and environmentally.
1. Slow onset disaster: These are disasters which are slow in its occurrence-like drought,
environmental degradation, etc. In these cases, the time factor to detect and respond is
high.
2. Rapid onset disaster: These disasters occur suddenly like Earthquake, Tsunami, etc. In
these cases the time available to detect and respond is very less.
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Response:
Whenever there is a disaster event it affects humans in different ways. People get stranded,
physical infrastructure gets affected, and communication network gets affected.
In this case, disaster response is needed. This includes- immediate rescue of the people,
providing immediate relief in the form of setting up relief camps, restoring communication
network, restoring infrastructure, etc.
Recovery:
1. Rehabilitation-
Rehabilitation is the process where measures are taken to make the society function
normally.
2. Reconstruction-
Reconstruction is the process where the communities are resilient to the disaster events
through better reconstruction of physical infrastructure such as replacement of roads,
buildings and other important infrastructure facilities.
Here long term development of infrastructure is given importance compared to the existing
infrastructure.
1. Prevention:
Prevention is removing the risk of disasters through structural and non structural measures.
(Refer basic terminology to understand the meaning of structural and non structural).
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However, preventing natural hazard risk is not possible because of the nature and scale of
these events.
Even for manmade hazards, we can’t prevent the risk because of the increasing uncertainty
and the rapid nature of some of the manmade events.
But we can reduce the risk of hazards. This reduction process is called mitigation.
2. Mitigation:
Mitigation is lessening and reducing the impact of hazards and the related disasters.
2. Non structural measures- Any measure not involving physical construction. It involves
use of knowledge, practice or agreement to reduce the risk. These measures are in
particular through policies and laws, public awareness, training and education.
3. Preparedness:
It is a process under which individuals, communities and governments are ready to face the
hazard.
It is a short term process where measures are taken before the disaster event.
These include:
Institutional and Legal Framework under National Disaster Management Act, 2005
Under this Act, at Central, State and District level various institutions are established.
@ Central Level:
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- Composition:
- NDMA shall meet as and when necessary –Fixed by Chairman – time & place.
- Functions:
4. Lay down guidelines for the purpose of integrating the measures for prevention of disaster
or the mitigation of its effects in their development plans & projects.
5. Coordinate the enforcement & implementation of the policy & plan for disaster
management.
6. Lay down policies & guidelines for the functioning of the National Institute of Disaster
Management.
2. Advisory Committee:
- To assist NDMA.
-Composition:
Functions:
- NDMA shall provided guidelines for minimum standards of relief to be provided to persons
affected by disaster.
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Measures to be taken:
2. Ensuring the integration of measures for prevention & mitigation of disaster by Ministries
or Departments of GOI into their development plans & projects.
4. Deployment of naval, military & air forces, other armed forces of the Union or any other
civilian personnel.
- Central Government Constituted an institute for responsible for planning & promoting
training and research in the area of disaster management , documentation and development
of national level information base relating to disaster management policies, prevention
mechanisms & mitigation measures.
7. Finance:
1. National Disaster Response Fund-managed by: NEC. It is towards meeting the expenses
for emergency response, relief and rehabilitation in consultation with NDMA.
2. National Disaster Mitigation Fund-managed by NDMA. It is for projects exclusively for the
purpose of mitigation.
@ State level,
Composition:
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Functions:
3. Approve the plans prepared by the departments of the Government of the state.
4. Lay down guidelines for the purpose of integrating the measures for prevention of disaster
or the mitigation of its effects in their development plans & projects.
2. Advisory Committee:
- To assist SDMA.
5. Finances:
@ District Level,
Composition-
[Tribal Areas (6th schedule) - Chief Executive of the District council of Autonomous District –
Co – Chairperson].
Functions:
1. Prepare a disaster management plan including district response plan for the district.
2. Set up, maintain, review & upgrade the mechanism for early warning & dissemination of
proper information to public.
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{Note: You need not mug up the info given in the below table. Just to have an idea on what
is the role of different bodies in Disaster management this table is given. }
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4) National Executive Union Home Secretary To assist the NDMA in the discharge
Committee (NEC) (Chairperson) of its functions.
Secretaries to the GOI Preparation of the National Plan.
in the Ministries/ Coordinate and monitor the
Departments of implementation of the National
Agriculture, Atomic Policy.
Energy, Defence, Monitor the implementation of the
Drinking water and National Plan and the plans
sanitation, prepared by the Ministries or
Environment, Forests Departments of the Government of
and climate change India.
Finance (Expenditure), Direct any department or agency of
Health and Family the Govt. to make available to the
welfare, Power, Rural NDMA or SDMAs such men,
Development, Science material or resources as are
and Technology, Space available with it for the purpose of
Telecommunications, emergency response, rescue and
Urban Development, relief.
Water Resources, River Ensure compliance of the directions
Development and issued by the Central Government.
Ganga Rejuvenation, Coordinate response in the event of
The Chief of the any threatening disaster situation or
Integrated Defence disaster.
Staff of the chiefs of Direct the relevant
Staff Committee, ex Ministries/Departments of the Gol,
officio as members. the State Governments and the
Secretaries in the SDMAs regarding measures to be
Ministry of External taken in response to any specific
Affairs, Earth Sciences, threatening disaster situation or
Human Resources disaster.
Development, Mines, Coordinate with relevant Central
shipping, Road Ministries/Departments/Agencies
Transport and which are expected to provide
Highways and assistance to the affected state as
Secretary, NDMA are per Standard Operating Procedures
special invitees to the (SOPs).
meetings of the NEC. Coordinate with the Armed Forces,
Central Armed Police Forces
(CAPF), the National Disaster
Response Force (NDRF) and other
uniformed services which comprise
the Gol’s response to aid the State
authorities.
Coordinate with Civil Defence
volunteers, home guards and fire
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
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Development cannot be substantial unless disaster mitigation is built into the development
process.
So, countries under UN have resolved to reduce the risk of disasters in a series of World
Conferences on Disaster Risk Reduction.
2. 2nd World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction- Hyogo Framework Action Plan
The Yokohoma framework has set three strategic goals and five priority action areas
regarding the integration of disaster risk reduction (DRR) into sustainable development
policies, capacity building and preparedness and vulnerability reduction.
Five Priority Actions under the Hyogo Framework
1. Ensure that disaster risk reduction is a national and a local priority with a strong
institutional basis for implementation.
2. Identify, assess and monitor disaster risks and enhance early warning.
3. Use knowledge, innovation and education to build a culture of safety and
resilience at all levels.
4. Reduce the underlying risk factors.
5. Strengthen disaster preparedness for effective response at all levels.
The three strategic goals of the Hyogo Framework for Action along with steps taken by India
towards its implementation are:
(a) Goal 1: "The more effective integration of disaster risk considerations into sustainable
development policies, planning and programming at all levels, with a special emphasis on
disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness and vulnerability reduction;"
• With the enactment of the DM Act, 2005, and preparation of the disaster
management plan, 2016, the present focus of the government is to implement the
various provisions under them.
• All the government programs are being designed following the principle of "do no
harm".
(b) Goal 2: "The development and strengthening of institutions, mechanisms and capacities
at all levels, in particular at the community level, that can systematically contribute to
building resilience to hazards;"
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The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 is a non-binding agreement,
which the signatory nations, including India, will attempt to comply with on a voluntary basis.
The Sendai Framework aims to achieve substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in
lives, livelihoods, and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural, and environ
mental assets of persons, businesses, communities, and countries.
The four priorities for action under the Sendai Framework are:
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Our main focus should be on the measures to mitigate the hazard. Because, most of our
previous questions are from the Mitigational measures, suggested by the NDMA.
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Natural Hazards
Natural Hazards are the events that cause huge scale loss to humans, economy and to the
environment and these are induced by the natural causes/nature’s forces.
1. Earthquake 6. Cyclones
2. Landslide and Snow Avalanches 7. Cloudbursts
3. Tsunamis 8. Droughts
4. Floods 9. Heat waves
5. Urban Floods 10. Cold wave and frost
1. Earth Quake
What is an earthquake?
The sudden release of energy in the form of seismic waves that results in ground shaking is
known as Earthquake.
This can be explained through Plate tectonic theory.
Plate tectonic theory:
The earth's crust is divided into seven major plates and numerous minor plates.
These plates move slowly and continuously over the earth's interior. This movement
causes 3 types of boundaries:
1. Convergent boundary
2. Divergent boundary
3. Transverse boundary
These plate boundaries form the areas of stress.
At these boundaries accumulated stress gets released by slipping or rupturing. These zones
are known as 'faults'.
The fault rupture generates vibration called seismic (from the Greek 'seismos' meaning
shock or earthquake) waves, which radiates from the focus (the point of origin of the shock
waves) in all directions.
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Among these, Zone V is the most seismically active region and zone II is the least active.
Zone V: It includes entire north-eastern India, parts of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, parts of North Bihar and Andaman &
Nicobar Islands.
Zone-IV: It includes the remaining parts of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.
Delhi-NCR region, Sikkim, northern parts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal, parts of
Gujarat and small portions of Maharashtra near the west coast and Rajasthan also fall in
this zone.
Zone III: Regions under zone III are Goa, Kerala, Lakshadweep, and remaining parts of
Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and West Bengal, parts of Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh,
Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu and
Karnataka.
Zone II: The remaining portion of the country falls under zone II.
Ministry of Earth Sciences is the nodal agency to deal with Earthquake disasters.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) is the nodal agency for the monitoring
of seismic activity.
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is the nodal agency for preparing earthquake-
resistant building codes and other safety codes.
Which regions of India are more prone to Earthquakes?
The entire Himalayan belt is considered prone to great earthquakes of magnitude
exceeding 8.0.
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In a relatively short span of about 50 years, four such earthquakes have occurred: 1897
Shillong (M8.7); 1905 Kangra (M8.0); 1934 Bihar-Nepal (M8.3); and 1950 Assam-Tibet
(M8.6).
Due to the convergence boundary between Indian Plate and the Eurasian plate, the
entire Himalayan belt including North East is prone to Earthquakes.
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are also situated on an inter-plate boundary and
frequently experience damaging earthquakes.
Is Deccan peninsula a safer region to earthquakes?
At one time regions of the country away from the Himalayas and other inter-plate
boundaries were considered to be relatively safe from damaging earthquakes.
However, in the recent past, even these areas have experienced devastating
earthquakes, but of lower magnitude than the Himalayan earthquakes.
Cases:
Koyna Earthquake: The Koyna earthquake in 1967 led to revision of the seismic
zoning map, resulting in deletion of the non-seismic zone from the map. The areas
surrounding Koyna were also re-designated to Seismic Zone IV, indicating high hazard.
Killari Earthquake:
The occurrence of the Killari earthquake (The earthquake struck at about 3.56 am on
September 30, 1993) in the intra-plate earthquake about 52 villages was destroyed, over
30,000 were injured and approximately 10,000 were killed. The earthquake left a huge
hollow at Killari, which was also the epicenter, remains in place till date) in 1993 resulted
in further revision of the seismic zoning map.
Under this the low hazard zone or Seismic Zone I was merged with Seismic Zone II, and
some parts of Deccan and Peninsular India were brought under Seismic Zone III
consisting of areas designated as moderate hazard zone areas.
Recent research suggests that as understanding of the seismic hazard of these regions
increases, more areas assigned as low hazard may be re-designated to higher level of
seismic hazard, or vice-versa.
BHUJ EARTHQUAKE – 2001
On 26th January, 2001, when all Indians were celebrating Republic day, the State of
Gujarat felt an earthquake in morning at 8.49 A.M. A powerful Earthquake of magnitude
6.9 on Richter-Scale rocked the Western region of India.
This earthquake was so devastating in its scale and suffering that the likes of it had not
been experienced in past 50 years. It caused extensive damage to life & property, about
14000 people died and thousands of people were injured.
This earthquake was spread up to 2250 km in circle. Twenty-one out of a total 25 districts
of the State were affected consisting of around 18 towns, 182 talukas and 7904 villages
which saw large-scale devastation.
The affected areas even spread up to 300 km from the epicenter. In the Kutch district,
where the epicenter was, four major urban areas – Bhuj, Anjar, Bachau and Rapar
suffered near total destruction. The rural areas in the region were also very badly affected
with over 450 villages almost totally destroyed.
In addition, wide spread damages also occurred in Rajkot, Jamnagar, Surendranagar,
Patan and Ahmedabad districts. Other urban areas such as Gandhidham, Morvi, Rajkot
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and Jamnagar also suffered damages to major structures, infrastructure and industrial
facilities. In Ahmedabad, the commercial capital of Gujarat was also severely affected,
750 people died in the city and 130 multistory flats, houses were destroyed.
Gujarat earthquake is very significant from the point of view of earthquake disaster
mitigation in India. This quake has provided numerous examples of geo-technical and
structural failures. Gujarat earthquake reconstruction initiative is widely acclaimed world
over for its unique features and sustainability.
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The National Building Code of India (NBC) provides guidelines for regulating the building
construction activities on different materials, planning, design and construction practices of
buildings. It lays down provisions designed to protect the safety of the public with regard to
structural sufficiency, fire hazards and health aspect of buildings.
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Floods
What is a flood?
Every water channel has a maximum capacity known as carrying capacity. When the water
holding capacity of the water body or water channel exceeds the carrying capacity, the
water starts overflowing.
This overflowing of water and silt is known as flood.
Floods are of different types:
1. Flash floods
2. River floods
3. Coastal floods
4. Urban floods
What are the reasons for floods?
Natural reasons:
Monsoon Rainfall: Eighty per cent of the precipitation takes place in the monsoon
months from June to September. During this season, the rivers bring heavy sediment
load from catchments.
Inadequate carrying capacity of rivers is responsible for causing floods, drainage
congestion and erosion of river-banks.
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Flash floods: Cyclones, cyclonic circulations and cloud bursts cause flash floods and
lead to huge discharges of water.
Ice jams or landslides blocking streams also cause floods.
Man made reasons:
Encroachment of flood plains and wetlands
Improper handling of dams
Lack of proper drainage system
Heavy siltation in the catchment areas due to
Deforestation
Mining
Over grazing
Words to know:
Wetland-A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is inundated by water, either permanently
or seasonally, where oxygen-free processes prevail.
All the rivers, lakes, marshy lands, even the rice field are called the wetlands.
Flood plain- Flood plain is an adjacent zone to the main river channel. This area gets
inundated during the peak rainfall season.
Catchment area- It is an area from where particular water body receives water through
rainfall, glacial melt, etc.
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Flooding may cause landslides in the Mountainous regions [Land slide here is a
secondary hazard]
Lack of proper drinking water facilities, contamination of water (well, ground water, piped
water supply) leads to outbreak of epidemics, diarrhoea, viral infection, malaria and
many other infectious diseases.
Flooding also leads to a large area of agricultural land getting inundated as a result there
is a huge crop loss. This results in shortage of food, and animal fodder.
Floods may also affect the soil characteristics. The land may be rendered infertile due to
erosion of top layer or may turn saline if sea water floods the area.
Flood Forecasting and Warning in India: Real time discharge and rainfall data is the
basic requirements for the formulation of a flood forecast.
Most of the hydro-meteorological data are observed and collected by the field formations
of Central Water Commission. IMD supplies the daily rainfall data.
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Cloudburst:
What is a Cloudburst?
A cloudburst is a sudden downpour within a radius of few kilometres. It usually lasts no
longer than few minutes. But it is capable of flooding the area. Rainfall from a cloudburst
is usually over 100 mm per hour.
How are cloudbursts formed?
Monsoon clouds filled with water droplets move across the plains. Warm air currents
keep pushing the clouds up not allowing them to shed rain.
More and more water droplets get collected and the clouds get bigger as they move
up a mountain or hill.
The clouds soon stop moving since there is barely any wind up in the mountains.
The warm air holding up the water drops in the clouds cools. The cloud bursts like a
soggy paper bag and the rain comes suddenly.
Cloudburst risks in India
As per the specific definition of IMD, Cloudburst is- If rainfall of about 10 cm or above per
hour is recorded over a place that is roughly 10 km x 10 km in area, it is classified as a
cloudburst event. This means 5 cm of rainfall in half an hour would also be classified as a
cloudburst.
India, in a normal year, gets about 116 cm of rain in the entire year i.e. every area in the
country, on an average, should expect to get only this amount during the course of the
year.
Why cloudbursts intensity sis increasing in India?
The events of extreme precipitation have been on the rise in the last few decades due to
global warming.
Distribution Pattern of Cloudbursts:
Cloudbursts do happen in plains as well, but there is a greater probability of them
occurring in mountainous zones; as it has to do with the terrain of the region. For
example- like steep hills favour the formation of these clouds.
Cloudbursts get counted only when they result in large scale destruction of life and
property, which happens mainly in mountainous regions.
Predictability about Cloudbursts
There is no satisfactory technique for anticipating the occurrence of cloud bursts
because of their small scale.
A very fine network of radars is required to be able to detect the likelihood of a
cloud burst about six hours in advance, sometimes even 12-14 hours in advance.
This would be prohibitively expensive. Only the areas likely to receive heavy
rainfall can be identified on a short range scale.
Much of the damage can be avoided by way of identifying the areas and the
meteorological situations that favour the occurrence of cloud bursts.
Measures taken to mitigate the impact of floods can be suggested for mitigating
the impact of cloudbursts also.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
[Note: The below is the list of all measures suggested by the NDMA. For the exam purpose
remember only the important ones]
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) issued guidelines on management of
floods in 2008. The summary of the recommendations are as follows:
1. Embankments/flood walls/flood levees have to be constructed for prevention of flooding
after carrying out detailed hydrological and morphological studies regarding their
favourable and adverse effects.
2. The CWC and the state governments have to study the problem of rise in river beds in a
scientific manner and explore the techno-economic viability of desilting/dredging as a
remedial measure to mitigate the effects of rise in the river beds.
3. Appropriate channel improvement works have to be taken up to increase the velocity
and/or the area of flow and reduce the flood level in the river depending upon site-
specific conditions.
4. State governments should prohibit the blocking of the natural drainage channels and
sluices with an appropriate law and improve their capacity and construct new channels
and sluices to ensure flow of excess rainwater in the area.
5. State governments should study the feasibility of implementing the schemes for diverting
excess water to existing or new channels by bye-passing towns and cities to prevent
flooding.
6. Watershed management measures such as afforestation, check dams, detention basins
etc., have to be implemented in the catchment of rivers to prevent soil erosion, enhance
water conservation and minimise water and sediment runoff.
7. State governments should consider appropriate anti-erosion measures such as
revetments, slope pitching, permeable and impermeable spurs using conventional
materials and/or geo-synthetics for protection of towns, cities, and industrial areas,
groups of thickly populated villages, railway lines, roads and embankments from erosion
by rivers in a time-bound manner.
8. Sea walls/coastal protection works has to be planned and executed by the respective
coastal states/port authorities, keeping in view the complexity of sea behaviour and other
environmental aspects.
9. The state governments has to provide adequate number of raised platforms/flood
shelters at suitable locations in the flood plains with basic amenities such as drinking
water, sanitation, medical treatment, cooking, tents, lantern etc. for the people to take
shelter during floods.
10. Basin-wise flood hazard mitigation models have to be developed.
11. A mechanism has to be developed wherein representatives of the CWC, IMD, NRSA
and the states interact with each other, exchange data on a real-time basis and
formulate the flood forecasts and warnings.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
12. With co-operation from Nepal, Bhutan and the China, data has to be collected on real-
time basis.
13. The state governments have to enact and enforce appropriate laws for implementing
flood plain zoning regulations.
14. The reclamation of the existing wetlands/natural depressions has to be prohibited by
state governments and they must formulate an action plan for using them for flood
moderation.
15. Training and capacity building measures have to be taken up for designated authorities
dealing with the disaster.
16. A number of organizations, like NGOs, self-help groups, CBOs, youth organizations
such as NCC, NYKS, NSS etc., women’s groups, volunteer agencies, Civil Defence,
Home Guards, etc. must be encouraged to volunteer their services in the aftermath of
any disaster.
17. The state governments have to utilise different types of media, especially print, radio,
television and Internet, to disseminate timely and accurate information.
18. A team comprising a social worker, a psychologist and a psychiatrist should provide
counselling to victims.
19. Measures should be taken to strengthen Ganga Flood Control Board and Brahmaputra
Board.
Aapada Mitra Scheme
The NDMA has approved a Centrally Sponsored Scheme nme Aapad Mitra
Scheme.
It is to focus on training community volunteers in disaster response in the 30 most
flood-prone districts of 25 states in India.
It aims to train community volunteers with the skills that they would need to respond
to their community’s immediate needs and to undertake basic relief and rescue
tasks from emergency situations such as floods, flash floods, and urban flooding,
when emergency services are not readily available.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Urban Floods
What is urban flood?
Flooding in urban areas can be caused by flash floods, or coastal floods, or river floods. But
there is a specific flood type that is called urban flooding.
In Urban areas there is little open soil that can be used for water storage and water
percolation.
So, nearly all the rainwater needs to be transported to the surface water system or to the
sewage system.
When there is a high intensity rainfall, the water starts inundates the city when the capacity
of drainage is less.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Land Use Change: Due to land-use changes, flooding in urban areas can happen very
rapidly with large flow.
Ex: Chennai Floods of 2015- Flood plain areas are now being used for development
activities. And the low lying areas are used for construction of buildings due to paucity of
land in urban areas. This has led to flooding when there was a heavy rainfall.
Limited capacity of storm water drainage system: Storm water drainage systems in
the past were designed for rainfall intensity of 12 – 20 mm. But the average rainfall in
Indian cities far exceeds the capacity of drainage system. The designed system
capacities do not work due to poor maintenance.
Encroachment of wetlands is another big problem in many cities and towns.
Consequently the capacity of the natural drains such as lakes, streams, etc has
decreased, resulting in flooding.
Improper disposal of solid waste, including domestic, commercial and industrial waste
and dumping of construction debris into the drains also contributes significantly to
reducing their capacities.
Developed Catchment areas: Rapid urbanisation leads to developed catchments.
These increase the flood peaks from 1.8 to 8 times and flood volumes by up to 6 times.
Consequently, flooding occurs very quickly due to faster flow times, sometimes in a
matter of minutes.
What are the impacts of urban floods?
Inundation of some or large parts urban areas for several hours to many days.
Temporary relocation of people, dispersal of animals,
Damage to civic amenities,
Deterioration of water quality
Risk of epidemics due to water stagnation
Urban areas of major centres of economic activity. Urban floods can severely
damage the economic activity, which may take long time for reconstruction of the
economy.
Slums areas get disproportionately affected which may cause severe socio-
economic distress to those communities.
What areas to vulnerable to Urban Floods India?
In the past several years, there is an increasing trend of urban flood disasters in India.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Existing Challenges:
Less importance to comprehensive risk assessment of urban flooding. It includes
understanding, analysis and assessment of urban flood risks, before flood mitigation
measures are planned and implemented.
Ignorance of mapping of different factors and risks in different cities and non-inclusion of
the same in development planning
Unsatisfactory coordination among different institutions for experience sharing for the
purpose of public awareness and imparting professional training of disaster managers.
Lack of information sharing,
Disintegrated investment decisions, and
Lack of consultation with stakeholders.
[Note: The below is the list of all measures suggested by the NDMA. For the exam purpose
remember only the important ones]
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued guidelines on
management of urban flooding in 2010.
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20. Ward level Information System has to be developed using high resolution satellite
images/aerial photos, integrated with socio-economic data covering natural resources
and infrastructure facilities on appropriate scale (1:1000) at community level.
21. States/UTs have to build partnerships with public/ private insurance companies and civil
society to sensitive communities about available schemes and also develop appropriate
micro-insurance schemes targeted at low-income groups.
22. The database of the National Urban Information System (NUIS) will be expanded to
cover infrastructure facilities at community level integrated with socio-economic data.
23. Urban Flooding has to be dealt as a separate disaster, de-linking it from riverine floods
which affect the rural areas.
24. Storm water drainage concerns will be made a part of all EIA norms.
25. Buildings have to be designated as Flood Shelters and all necessary arrangements have
to be ensured ahead of the flood season. Children, women, the aged and the differently-
abled persons has to be given special attention.
26. Post-floods, restoration of power, telecommunications, road and railway transport will get
top priority.
27. Media, corporate, NGOs has to be involved in awareness generation.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Landslides
What is a landslide?
Landslide is a process of down slope movement of rock, debris and /or earth under the
influence of gravity.
Natural Factors:
Similar Phenomenon-
Snow Avalanches
Avalanches are block of snow or ice descending from the mountain tops at a river like
speedy flow.
They are extremely damaging and cause huge loss to life and property.
In Himalaya, avalanches are common in Drass, Pir Panijal, Lahaul-Spiti and
Badrinath areas. As per Snow and Avalanche Study
Establishment (SASE), of Defence Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO), on an average, around 30 people are killed every year, due to this
disaster in various zones of the Himalayan range.
Beside killing people, avalanches also damage the roads, properties, and
settlements falling in its way. Traffic blockage, structural damages of roads, and
retaining wall damages occur most frequently due to avalanches.
Snow avalanches occur in several stretches of the Himalayan range with the following
areas being more vulnerable:
Western Himalaya – the snowy regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh
Uttarakhand, especially Tehri Garhwal and Chamoli districts
Jammu and Kashmir – Higher reaches of Kashmir and Gurez valleys, Kargil and
Ladakh and along some of the major roads
Himachal Pradesh – Chamba, Kullu-Spiti and Kinnaur
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Loss of life: Communities living at the foot of hills and mountains are at a greater risk of
death by landslides.
Impacts river ecosystems: The soil, debris, and rock sliding downhill can find way into
rivers and block their natural flow. It may cause flood. Many river habitats like fish can
die due to interference of natural flow of water. Communities depending on the river
water for household activities and irrigation will suffer if flow of water is blocked.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Case Studies:
A GSI survey after the Malin landslide (2014) had identified around 20 villages which
might face landslides.
The villages are located around Dimbhe dam on Ghod river. Locals often complain of
increased occurrences of landslides since it was constructed.
It took just a few minutes for the tribal village of Malin in Ambegaon taluka of Pune district
to be wiped out from the face of the earth. The landslide which resulted in the death of
over 150 people was the result of incessant rains coupled with geographical instability of
the area.
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Two years down the line, residents of villages around Malin’s vicinity are scared of the
same fate befalling them. With landslides becoming increasingly common, some have
even taken to migrating to safer destinations during the monsoons.
Following the devastating landslide, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) had conducted a
detailed survey about the geological stability of the area. In its report, it had identified
around 20 villages and hamlets which might face threats of landslide.
These villages are located around the Dimbhe dam which was constructed on the Ghod
river. Experts have pointed out to the inherent dangers of the dam which seems to be
silting at an alarming rate. Local residents have often complained of increased
occurrences of landslides since the dam was constructed.
Existing Challenges:
Integrating landslide concerns in the development of disaster management plans at
different levels i.e., national, state, district, municipal/Panchayat.
Switch-over from piecemeal remediation of landslides to simultaneous and holistic
implementation of control measures.
Techno-legal regime for introduction of sound slope protection, planned urbanisation,
regulated land use and environment friendly land management practices.
Zero tolerance against deliberate environmental violence and unhealthy construction
practices.
Laws governing new constructions and alteration of existing land use on problematic
slopes and in landslide prone areas.
Innovation in the management of multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary teams.
Establishment of a disaster knowledge network and a mechanism for dissemination of
information at the national level, mechanism for international linkages, cooperation and
joint initiatives.
NDMA follows a 9 –step process to manage Landslides. These include the following major
elements to enhance the effectiveness of managing landslide hazard in the country:
This includes delineating areas prone to landslide hazards and status of landslide hazards in
different areas.
This is to assess the resources at risk due to these hazards as per the requirement of
communities and for planning and decision making purposes.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
2. Multi-Hazard Conceptualisation:
This also includes monitoring of landslides and development of early warning systems.
The study of landslide hazards is an area that requires active research. Unlike many other
violent acts of nature, landslide hazards can be mapped out. They can be predicted and
contained based on the research.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
A web portal, India Disaster Knowledge Network (IDKN) is launched at National level.
Developing institutional capacity and training for geoscientists, engineers, and planners are
necessary for effective management of landslide hazard.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Cyclones
1. What is a cyclone?
Cyclone is a low pressure system which carries heavy winds and rains with it.
Cyclones are classified as:
(i) Extra tropical cyclones (also called temperate cyclones); and
(ii) Tropical cyclones.
Extra tropical cyclones occur in temperate zones and high latitude regions, though they
are known to originate in the Polar Regions.
Tropical Cyclones: Cyclones that develop in the regions between the Tropics of Capricorn
and Cancer are called tropical cyclones.
Tropical cyclones are large-scale weather systems developing over tropical or subtropical
waters.
2. What are the reasons for formation of cyclone?
The conditions favourable for the formation and intensification of tropical storms are:
(i) Large sea surface with temperature higher than 27° C;
(ii) Presence of the Coriolis force;
(iii) Small variations in the vertical wind speed;
iv) A pre-existing weak low-pressure area or low-level-cyclonic circulation;
(v) Upper divergence above the sea level system.
Worldwide terminology:
Cyclones are given many names in different regions of the world – They are known as –
1. Typhoons in the China Sea and Pacific Ocean;
2. Hurricanes in the West Indian islands in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean;
3. Tornados in the Guinea lands of West Africa and southern USA.
4. Willy-willies in north-western Australia and
5. Tropical cyclones in the Indian Ocean.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
The criteria below have been formulated by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD),
which classifies the low pressure systems in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea on the
basis of capacity to damage, which is adopted by the WMO.
1. On the basis of speed
2. On the basis of extent of damage
01 120-150 Minimal
02 150-180 Moderate
03 180-210 Extensive
04 210-250 Extreme
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pressure zone.
This is because more fresh
water that gets drained into the
Bay of Bengal due to east
flowing rivers.
Direction of Cyclone Western Coast experiences As the direction of Cyclones is
movement cyclone effect due to the re- from East to West all the
curving of cyclone. cyclones formed over Bay of
So only Gujarat State and Bengal impacts one or other
parts of Maharashtra gets state in the Eastern Coast.
affected through the cyclones
formed over Arabian Sea.
Alignment of the Coast Western Coast is narrow and Eastern Coast is broader and is
is planked by the continuous planked by the discontinuous
mountains of Western Ghats. Eastern Ghats. So, the cyclonic
These mountains act as a storm spreads to the interior
barrier for the cyclonic storm areas.
to spread to interior areas.
Case Studies:
Orissa super cyclone, 1999 –
A super cyclone hit the coast of the state of Orissa on October 29, 1999, with wind speed
of 270-300 kmph, accompanied by torrential rains ranging from 400 mm to 867 mm
continuously for three days.
The turbulent sea surged up to 7 m high, with waves that rushed in and travelled up to 15-
20 km inland. The super cyclone caused extensive damage.
About ten thousand people were killed, while over 1.6 million houses were damaged. The
sectors of agriculture, livestock, village industries, infrastructure and environment were
badly devastated.
Success Story: Cyclone Phailin: Odisha
The Cyclone Phailin that hit Odisha coast is of same intensity as Super Cyclone of Odisha
of 1999. The 1999 cyclone killed almost 10,000 people but the casualties due to Cyclone
Phailin’s are very less.
The following are the best management practices Odisha has taken up for this remarkable
result.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Dedicated response force: Odisha has its own State Disaster Response Force (SDRF)
unlike other states. Better coordination between NDMA and SDRF provided for swift
evacuation and rescue.
Early Warning System: The impact of the cyclone was minimized because timely and
accurate information was disseminated quickly, which helped in conceiving an action plan
and implementing it. Strong Early Warning System is established at the Coastal districts.
Community Awareness:
Large scale community awareness programs were being conducted as part of
preparedness. Media and social media played important role in this awareness
generation.
Recognising all these efforts UNSIDR has appreciated Odisha’s Zero Causality approach
and added it as global best practice.
Existing Challenges
The failure to adequately respond to warnings stemming from lack of planning and
coordination at the national and local levels, as well as a lack of understanding by
people of their risks.
Bare minimum the terminal-end equipment and communication back-up equipment
support.
Lack of grass root level participation in disaster management to build up effective
resilience to disasters.
Lack of a fully automated and state-of-the-art OC at NDMA and MHA with all terminal-
end facilities and communication connectivity both for routine activities and also during
disasters.
The need for integration of networks set up by various agencies to establish various
types of networks in the country for disaster management.
Failure of even well-engineered structures such as communication and transmission
towers past cyclones.
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Tsunamis
What is a Tsunami?
A tsunami is a series of waves with a long wavelength and period (time between crests).
Time between crests of the wave can vary from a few minutes to over an hour.
The term Tsunami has been derived from a Japanese term Tsu meaning 'harbor' and nami
meaning 'waves'.
Tsunamis are popularly called tidal waves but they actually have nothing to do with the
tides.
The major reasons for Tsunami are occurrence of any of the following events in the
sea/ocean.
1. Earthquakes
2. Volcanoes
3. Landslides
Local tsunami events or those less than 30 minutes from the source cause the majority
of damage.
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It is normally the flooding affect of the tsunami that causes major destruction to the
human settlements, roads and infrastructure thereby disrupting the normal functioning of
the society.
Withdrawal of the tsunami causes major damage. As the waves withdraw towards the
ocean they sweep out the foundations of the buildings, the beaches get destroyed and
the houses carried out to sea.
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The disaster invited attention of affected countries for setting up effective tsunami early
warning system and institutional mechanism for handling disasters.
The Government of India has put in place an Early Warning System for mitigation of such
oceanogenic disasters under the control of Indian National Center for Ocean Information
Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad.
A state-of-the-art early warning centre was established with the necessary computational
and communication infrastructure that enables reception of real-time data from sensors,
analysis of the data, generation and dissemination of tsunami advisories following a
standard operating procedure.
Seismic and sea-level data are continuously monitored in the Early Warning Centre using
custom-built software application that generates alarms/alerts in the warning centre
whenever a pre-set threshold is crossed.
Tsunami warnings/watches are then generated based on pre-set decision support rules
and disseminated to the concerned authorities for action, as per pre-decided standard
operating procedure.
The efficiency of this end-to-end system was proved during the large under-sea
earthquake of 8.4 M that occurred on September 12, 2007 in the Indian Ocean.
The east and west coasts of India and the island regions are likely to be affected by
Tsunamis generated mainly by subduction zone related earthquakes from the two potential
source regions, viz.,
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In order to protect the coastal environment and the life and property of the people along
the coastal areas from natural hazards including tsunami, the M.S. Swaminathan
Committee Report has further recommended that:
Mangrove wetlands should be regenerated.
Coral reefs, grass beds, and coastal forests should be preserved and conserved for
both short-term and long-term ecological and livelihood benefits.
Raising coastal plantations like casuarinas, saliconia, palm, bamboo, etc. will act as
an effective bio-shield and provide protection to the coastal communities.
Geomorphologic features like sand dunes, beaches, coastal cliffs should be protected.
Impact of natural hazards in the coastal and marine areas should be taken into
account while formulating coastal area management schemes.
5. It further recommends a robust techno-legal regime through efficient land use practices,
bio shields, and shelter belt plantation and mangrove regeneration with community
involvement.
Lack of high resolution near-shore bathymetric and topographic data will prove to be a
limiting factor for inundation models;
Inadequate community awareness on tsunami risk and vulnerability.
Lack of people's participation in strengthening disaster preparedness, mitigation and
emergency response in the coastal areas.
Lack of documentation of traditional knowledge for tsunami risk management.
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Droughts
What is drought?
There is no globally adopted operational definition for drought applicable to all contexts.
Drought results from long period of dry weather and insufficient precipitation, which causes
acute dry conditions.
The National Commission on Agriculture in India defines three types of droughts:
1. Meteorological drought, defined as a situation when there is significant decrease
from normal precipitation over an area (i.e. more than 10 %)
2. Agricultural drought, signifying the situation when soil moisture and rainfall are
inadequate to support healthy crop growth
3. Hydrological drought resulting from prolonged meteorological drought manifested
in depletion of surface and sub-surface water resources, which could occur even
when the rainfall is normal, if there has been a substantial reduction in surface water
holding capacity
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Natural reasons:
Geography and climate of a particular area impact the rainfall pattern.
Ex: Drought in arid and semi arid regions of the country.
Elnino: It impacts the monsoon rainfall adversely in India.
Low soil moisture holding capacity
Absence of irrigation facilities
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Broadly, the drought-affected areas in India can be divided into two tracts.
The first tract comprising the desert and the semi-arid regions covers an area of 0.6 million
sq. km. It is rectangle shaped area whose one side extends from Ahmadabad to Kanpur and
the other from Kanpur to Jullundur. In this region, rainfall is less than 750mm and at some
places it is even less than 400 mm.
The second tract comprises the regions east of the Western Ghats up to a distance of about
300 km from coast. Known as the rain shadow area of the Western Ghats, rainfall in this
region is less than 750mm and is highly erratic. This region is thickly populated and periodic
droughts cause considerable suffering and distress.
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Besides these two tracts of scarcity, there are many pockets of drought in India. Some of
these are:
Together, these scattered pockets occupy an area of 0.1 million sq. km. Drought is a
recurrent phenomenon in Andhra Pradesh where no district is entirely free of droughts.
Rajasthan is one of the most drought prone areas of India. Eleven districts of the state are in
arid regions including Jaisalmer as the driest district. No perennial river flows in Jaisalmer.
Groundwater level in the district is 125–250 ft deep and at some places 400 ft deep. The
rainfall in the district is extremely low at 164 mm. Out of 365 days of a year, on an average
355 days are dry.
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Heat Wave
What is heat wave?
A Heat Wave is a period of abnormally high temperatures, more than the normal maximum
temperature that occurs during the summer season.
What are the reasons for formation of heat wave?
Heat Waves typically occur between March and June, and in some rare cases even extend
till July.
The extreme temperatures and resultant atmospheric conditions cause heat waves.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has given the following criteria for Heat
Waves:
Heat Wave need not be considered till maximum temperature of a station reaches
1. 40*C at least for Plains and
2. 30*C at least for Hilly regions
When normal maximum temperature of a station is less than or equal to 40*C
1. Heat Wave Departure from normal is 5*C to 6*C
2. Severe Heat Wave Departure from normal is 7*C or more
When normal maximum temperature of a station is more than 40*C
1. Heat Wave Departure from normal is 4*C to 5*C
2. Severe Heat Wave Departure from normal is 6*C or more
When actual maximum temperature remains 45*C or more irrespective of normal
maximum temperature, heat waves should be declared.
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2. Crop Losses: Crop loss due to high temperature results into food insecurity, livelihood
issues, etc
3. Effects on Nature
Heat waves can lead to droughts with decrease in moisture in the air and soil.
Moisture in soil helps in cooling down the temperature by evaporation
Wildfires in open areas or forests become frequent due to heat waves.
Coral bleaching in oceans can rise
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[Note: In the above map PoK is not represented because of non availability of data]
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Mitigational measures:
DRR-Structural DRR-Non structural measures Capacity development
measures
Storage Facilities Quality health care provisions- Training
timely provision of medicines
and medical personnel
Water Conservation Promote water conservation, Curriculum Development
Structures harvesting, efficient irrigation, Awareness Generation
Afforestation
Social Housing Providing Agricultural credit, Empowering Women,
Schemes- White Agricultural inputs, marketing & marginalised communities,
layering of the roofs of crop insurance and differently-abled persons
the houses
Reducing Climate Change Mock Drills/Exercises
impacts
Alternative livelihood planning Vocational Training / Skill
Development
Food security provisions Heat wave Action plans
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i) Inflow of cold air mass from higher latitudes over the region.
ii) Foggy weather during the day which inhibits day warming of the region.
iii) Strong radiation cooling during the night under clear sky conditions.
Cold wave over India:
Cold waves over the country are generally experienced during December -February.
Rarely these may also occur in the northern parts of the country in the months of
November and March as well.
The frequency of occurrence of cold waves is maximum over north-western parts of
India.
It falls considerably towards the southern and eastern parts.
Occurrence of cold wave is associated with the inflow of very cold air from extreme
north-western parts of the Indian-sub-continent or even beyond.
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Nuclear and Radiological Emergency can arise in a nuclear facility at plant level leading
to plant/ site or offsite emergency depending upon the extent of its impact on the
surroundings.
It can also take place while using radiation sources, either at Hospitals, Industries,
Agriculture or Research Institutions due to loss or misplacement or due to faulty
handling.
The other events that can lead to Nuclear or Radiological Emergency in the public
domain include, accident of a vehicle carrying radioactive/nuclear material, due of an
orphan source i.e. the source which is not under regulatory control or due to usage of
radiation source/radioactive material in malevolent activities.
Nuclear emergencies can also arise due to factors beyond the control of the operating
agencies; e.g., human error, system failure, sabotage, earthquake, cyclone, flood, etc.
Such failures, even though of very low probability, may lead to an on-site or off-site
emergency.
Case Studies: Sad memories of the use of nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, and the wide publicity given to the reactor accidents at Three Mile Island (TMI)
in USA and Chernobyl in erstwhile USSR, have strongly influenced the public perception
of any nuclear or radiological emergency to be most often linked, erroneously though, to
only these events.
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What are the NDMA guidelines to mitigate the impact of this hazard?
Due to the inherent safety culture, the best safety practices and standards followed in these
applications and effective regulation by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, the radiation
dose to which the persons working in nuclear/radiation facilities are exposed to, is well
within the permissible limits and the risk of its impact on the public domain is very low.
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Biological Hazards
What is the meaning of this hazard?
Biological disaster is a phenomenon of organic origin or conveyed by biological vectors.
It is caused due to the exposure to pathogenic micro-organisms, toxins and bioactive
substances that may cause loss of life, injury, illness or other health impacts, property
damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental
damage.
Examples of biological disasters include outbreaks of epidemic diseases, plant or animal
contagion, insect or other animal plagues and infestation.
Biological disasters may be in the form of:-
Epidemic affecting a disproportionately large number of individuals within a population,
community, or region at the same time, examples being Cholera, Plague, Japanese
Encephalitis (JE)/Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES); or,
Pandemic is an epidemic that spreads across a large region, that is, a continent, or even
worldwide of existing, emerging or reemerging diseases and pestilences, example being
Influenza H1N1 (Swine Flu)
Case studies:
Avian influenza epidemic disease-2006
The outbreak of avian influenza among poultry was noticed in 2006 in India. In the
poultries located in Nandurbar and Jalgaon districts of Maharashtra and adjoining districts
of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh this disease was observed in the poultries. Due to
speedy action of Government authorities and awareness among the people, this disease
could be controlled. Poultry farm owners culled the affected and nonaffected chicken in
their poultry, as per guideline of Health ministry, as a preventive measure.
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What are the NDMA guidelines to mitigate the impact of this hazard?
Prevention and Mitigation Measures-
The general population should be educated and made aware of the threats and risks
associated with it.
Only cooked food and boiled/chlorinated/filtered water should be consumed.
Insects and rodent control measures must be initiated immediately.
Clinical isolation of suspected and confirmed cases is essential.
A network of laboratories should be established for proper laboratory diagnosis.
Existing diseases surveillance system as well as vector control measures have to be
pursued more rigorously.
Mass immunisation programs in suspected areas have to be followed more
rigorously.
More focus should be given on the research of the vaccines which are not available.
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Command, control and coordination - One of the lessons learned during the plague
outbreak in Surat in 1994 and avian influenza in 2006 is the need to strengthen
coordination with other sectors like animal health, home department, communication,
media, etc., on a continuous basis for the management of outbreaks of this nature
Augmentation in human resource - There is a shortage of medical and paramedical
staff at the district and sub-district levels. There is also an acute shortage of public
health specialists, epidemiologists, clinical microbiologists and virologists. There have
been limited efforts in the past to establish teaching/training institutions for these
purposes.
Basic infrastructural setup – Bio-safety laboratories for prompt diagnosis, network of
sub centres, PHCs and CHCs, dispensaries with stockpile of essential vaccines and
medicines need to be expanded to handle epidemic.
Chemical Hazards
What is the meaning of this hazard?
A chemical hazard is the unintentional/intentional release of one or more hazardous
substances which could harm human health or the environment.
Chemical, being at the core of modern industrial systems, has attained a very serious
concern for disaster management within government, private sector and community at large.
What are the causes for this hazard?
Chemical disasters may arise in number of ways, such as:-
1. Process and safety systems failures
- Human errors
- Technical errors
- Management errors
2. Induced effect of natural calamities
3. Accidents during the transportation
4. Hazardous waste processing/ disposal
5. Terrorist attack/ unrest leading to sabotage
What are impacts of this hazard?
Chemical/ industrial accidents are significant and have long term impact on the community
and environment.
It leads to injuries, pain, suffering, loss of lives, damage to property and environment.
What is India’s vulnerability profile to this hazard?
With rapid economic development, there has been spread of chemical industries – small,
medium and large – across the country.
However, there is a relatively higher presence along the west coast, largely due to the
proximity to raw materials and ports.
Gujarat alone is estimated to contribute around 53 percent to the total production in the
country, followed by Maharashtra, which contributes nine percent. The other major
producing states include Uttar Pradesh (UP), Tamil Nadu (TN), Madhya Pradesh (MP),
and Punjab.
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On the other hand, in the case of heavy chemicals segment, especially inorganic
chemicals, fuel availability is a determining factor, and hence there is a concentration of
these companies around power plants.
Due to the regional concentration of chemical companies in certain pockets, the
chemical hazard has increased many folds.
The growth of chemical industries has led to an increase in the risk of occurrence of
incidents associated with hazardous chemicals (HAZCHEM).
There are about 1861 Major Accident Hazard (MAH) units, spread across 301 districts
and 25 states & 3 Union Territories, in all zones of country.
Besides, there are thousands of registered and hazardous factories (below MAH criteria)
and un-organized sectors dealing with numerous range of hazardous material posing
serious and complex levels of disaster risks.
Case study:
Bhopal Gas Tragedy:
India has witnessed the world’s worst chemical (industrial) disaster “Bhopal Gas Tragedy”
in the year 1984. The Bhopal Gas tragedy was most devastating chemical accident in
history, where over thousands of people died due to accidental release of toxic gas Methyl
Iso Cyanate (MIC).
Such accidents are significant in terms of injuries, pain, suffering, loss of lives, damage to
property and environment. India continued to witness a series of chemical accidents even
after Bhopal had demonstrated the vulnerability of the country. Only in last decade, 130
significant chemical accidents reported in India, which resulted into 259 deaths and 563
number of major injured.
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Government of India has further reinforced the legal framework on chemical safety and
management of chemical accidents by enacting new rules such as MSIHC Rules, EPPR
Rules, SMPV Rules, CMV Rules, Gas Cylinder Rules, Hazardous Waste Rules, Dock
Workers Rules and by way of amendments to them.
What are the NDMA guidelines to mitigate the impact of this hazard?
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) of India had come out with very
specific guidelines on Chemical Disaster Management.
The guidelines have been prepared to provide the directions to ministries, departments
and state authorities for the preparation of their detailed disaster management plans.
These guidelines call for a proactive, participatory, multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral
approach at various levels for chemical disaster preparedness and response.
Further, NDMA has provided specific inputs to the GOM for avoidance of future chemical
disasters in the country, along with suggested amendments on the existing framework.
NDMA is also working on revamping of CIFs (Chief Inspectorate of Factories) to
strengthen chemical safety in India.
In addition, the National Action Plan on Chemical Industrial Disaster Management (NAP-
CIDM), has been finalized which will act as the roadmap for chemical disaster
management in India.
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Steps to be taken-
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So, the way forward is to shift from crowd control to crowd management.
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Case study:
AP- Godavari Pushkaralu (2015) vs Krishna Pushkaralu (2016)
Godavari Pushkaralu:
At least 27 people, including four women died, while several were injured when a
stampede occurred at Rajahmundry in AP during the Godavari Pushkaralu in June 2015.
The stampede brought to the fore the failure of the official machinery in making proper
scientific ground work for the Godavari Pushkaralu that witnessed the second highest
human gathering in the country after Kumbh Mela in Allahabad.
Krishna Pushkaralu:
The remarkable aspect of the Krishna Pushkarams 2016 has been the extensive use of
technology to manage the event. Apart from surveillance cameras, drones, mobile apps
and virtual inspection systems are being used to make the river festival a smart affair.
Some 1,400 surveillance cameras have been set up at vantage points at the seven ghats,
pushkar nagars and important routes in Vijayawada. The surveillance cameras are
powerful ones. They can be zoomed, tilted and panned by remote, giving a 180-270
degree view of the area.
The drones are octocopters equipped with surveillance cameras to hover over the throng
at the ghats and pushkar nagars. Airborne and mobile, they provide a bird's eye view of
the happenings, and can be moved closer to potential trouble spots. Each of the 18
drones can be airborne for 15 minutes and cover a 1-2 sq km area. They can hover as low
as 6 feet from the ground and transmit footage in real time.
IVRS technology being used to get feedback from the public in form of a sample survey.
Kaizala, developed by Microsoft, is another technology being employed. It works on the
same lines as Whatsapp and Telegram and can accommodate the mobile numbers of the
entire population of the state. It can be used as an instant messenging system to
communicate within a group.
According to experts, it can be even used to locate and keep track of the people. This
facility is being used by the authorities to stay in communication with each of the 60,000
government employees who are engaged in the Krishna Pushkaralu. After they download
the app and are assigned a task, they are geo-fenced, providing their exact whereabouts.
Further, using different mobile apps developed for Kaizala, photos taken with
smartphones can be uploaded instantly with details like the place and time taken. The
location can be tracked on Google Maps, as it is geo tagged. Another technology, Virtual
Inspection System, is being used to help officials to inspect any ghat from their offices. It
involves a person carrying a smart video camera which can transmit footage instantly to
the servers. The person tasked with carrying the lightweight equipment will act as per the
instructions of the inspecting officer.
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All the footage, feed, opinions, photos are being monitored from command control
centres, where they are collated, analysed and stored. Based on the analysis, officials can
take informed decisions. "It is smart crowd management which tracks the movement and
mood of the crowd," chief minister Chandrababu Naidu said while demonstrating how new
technologies are being used.
He said after the Krishna Pushkaram, the government is contemplating to utilize such
technology in various ways. They want to utilise surveillance cameras in urban bodies like
Vijayawada not only for security purposes but also to evaluate sanitation position and
other purposes.
The state government, which recruited engineering students to analyse the footage from
surveillance cameras, drones, IVRS, Kaizala and mobile apps, is encouraging them to
come out with ideas and use the Internet of Things (IoT). It is offering to make their ideas
into revenue generating entrepreneurs, by organising innovation societies at different
levels.
This has made the difference between the two events. Krishna Pushkaralu has
become successful compared to Godavari Pushkaralu.
What are the NDMA guidelines to mitigate the impact of this hazard?
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Forest Fires
What is the meaning of this hazard?
A wildfire/forest fire is an uncontrolled fire that is wiping out large fields and areas of land.
Fire Triangle:
There are basically three components i.e. fuel, heat and oxygen that are needed in right
combination to produce fire. Combination of these components produces the “fire triangle”.
Out of three essential components of fire triangle, two components i.e. fuel and oxygen are
naturally available in forest.
It is the third component i.e. heat that really initiates fire in the forest. Heat may be supplied
by either natural or artificial reasons. Depending upon the source of the heat, the causes for
forest fire may be classified as natural or artificial.
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Graziers and gatherers of various forest products starting small fires to obtain good
grazing grass as well as to facilitate gathering of minor forest produce like flowers
of Madhuca indica and leaves of Diospyros melanoxylon
The centuries old practice of shifting cultivation (especially in the North-Eastern
region of India and inparts of the States of Orissa and Andhra Pradesh).
The use of fires by villagers to ward off wild animals
Fires lit intentionally by people living around forests for recreation
Fires started accidentally by careless visitors to forests who discard cigarette butts.
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ii) Environmental causes are largely related to climatic conditions such as temperature,
wind speed and direction, level of moisture in soil and atmosphere and duration of dry
spells. Other natural causes are the friction of bamboos swaying due to high wind velocity
and rolling stones that result in sparks setting off fires in highly inflammable leaf litter on the
forest floor.
The causes of forest fire have been increasing rapidly. The problem has been accentuated
by the growing human and cattle population. People enter forests ever more frequently to
graze cattle, collect fuel-wood, timber and other mini forest produce. It has been estimated
that 90% of forest fires in India are man-made.
There are two types of forest fire i) Surface Fire and ii) Crown Fire
Surface Fire -
A forest fire may burn primarily as a surface fire, spreading along the ground as the surface
litter (senescent leaves and twigs and dry grasses etc) on the forest floor and is engulfed by
the spreading flames.
Crown Fire -
The other type of forest fire is a crown fire in which the crown of trees and shrubs burn, often
sustained by a surface fire. A crown fire is particularly very dangerous in a coniferous forest
because resinous material given off burning logs burn furiously. On hill slopes, if the fire
starts downhill, it spreads up fast as heated air adjacent to a slope tends to flow up the slope
spreading flames along with it. If the fire starts uphill, there is less likelihood of it spreading
downwards.
Fires are a major cause of forest degradation and have wide ranging adverse ecological,
economic and social impacts, including:
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Loss of livelihood for tribal people and the rural poor, as approximately 300 million
people are directly dependent upon collection of non-timber forest products from forest
areas for their livelihood.
The most vulnerable stretches of the world to forest fire are the youngest mountain ranges
of Himalayas.
Because of the more rain density, the forests of Eastern Himalayas are less vulnerable to
forest fires as compared to those in Western Himalayas.
With large scale expansion of Chir forests in Himalayan mountains, the frequency and
intensity of forest fires have increased alarmingly.
In 1995, the fires, particularly in the Uttarakhand hills had destroyed more than 3, 75,000
hectares of forest wealth. In all around 34, 24,857 hectares or 63.91percent forest area of
Uttarakhand is vulnerable to forest fire.
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The other affected area to fire in the country happens to be in the Ganga-Yamuna
watershed, the most vital of the country's four watersheds. Frequent vast fire incidences are
reported from this basin.
In the year 1999, the region experienced a huge fire, which caused major devastation over
an area of more than 80,000 hectares of forests, turning it into ashes.
Type of vegetation is the other major factor in deciding the vulnerability of the forests to fire.
Following are some of examples of tree species and forest types, which are more prone /
vulnerable to fire in different parts of the country.
a) Chir- Due to resin content, the chir tree is very prone to forest fire. As a result of fire the
lower stem of chir tree (previously used for resin tapping) becomes black. It is clear for this
tree that this species regenerates strongly if the over storey density is sufficiently low. Crown
fire is rarity in the chir forests and the most forest fires are in fact, ground fires.
b) Other coniferous species- Like chir, other conifers including, fir (Abies sp.), Spruce (Picea
smithiana), Cedrus deodara are also very susceptible to forest fire.
c) Sal- The butt damage of this species occurs, even if the fire intensity is not much.
d) Other Plantations - The plantations like Eucalyptus, Teak, Poplar, Sisham and several
other species are also vulnerable to fire. Among these species, Eucalyptus is grown on 8
years rotation for pulpwood, while other species are grown on longer rotations for larger and
higher value timber products. From the age of about 5 years, both Teak and Eucalyptus are
quite resistant to ground fire. There is only three-year period i.e. between the ages of 2 and
5, when Eucalyptus and Teak are at maximum risk from forest fire.
e) Mixed Dry Forest- Fire is commonly used by tribal people in such forests to prepare the
ground for harvesting mahua flowers and fruit, and it is apparent that they use fire skill for
this purpose. But when these practices are used indiscriminately, it causes much damage to
the surrounding species and soil.
In addition to the susceptibility of particular species, other factors viz. the age of the trees,
climate, the terrain etc. also decide the incidence of forest fire in a particular forest. The
socio- economic and socio-cultural pattern of the society also decides the vulnerability of
forest to fire.
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The incidence of forest fires in the country is on the increase and more area is burned each
year. The major cause of this failure is the piecemeal approach to the problem.
Both the national focus and the technical resources required for sustaining a systematic
forest fire management programme are lacking in the country.
Important forest fire management elements like strategic fire centres, coordination among
Ministries, funding, human resource development, fire research, fire management, and
extension programmes are missing.
Taking into consideration the serious nature of the problem, it is necessary to make some
major improvements in the forest fire management strategy for the country.
Case studies: The recent Bandipur forest fire destroyed more than thousand hectares of
the forest, also, claiming the life of a forest guard and injuring four others. It had spread
through most of the north-western part of the reserve, also posing danger to the adjoining
Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala.
Last year’s dreadful and destructive forest fire of Uttarakhand burnt down more than 4000
hectares of forest and claimed seven lives. The fire was finally doused using IAF
helicopter fitted with Bambi buckets. According to a report by Parliamentary Standing
Committee on Science and Technology, India, the country has seen a 55% rise in the
number of forest fires as on December 2016.
The Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, has prepared a National
Master Plan for Forest Fire Control.
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Each of the above components plays an important role in the success of the entire system
of fire management. Special emphasis is to be given to research, training, and development
The main objective of this scheme to control forest fires and strengthen the forest
protection in Tamilnadu. The works like fire line clearing, assistance to Joint Forest
Management committees, creating water bodies, purchase of vehicles and communication
equipments, purchase of fire fighting tools, etc., are being undertaken.
Oil Spills
What is the meaning of this hazard?
An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment. It can be
either on the land or on the water.
Natural causes –
1. Oil that seeps from the bottom of oceans which enters the marine environment. Crude oil
is formed during long periods of time through natural processes involving organic matter
from dead organisms. Thus, oil exists in many environments and may be naturally spilled
due to various factors (including climatic conditions, disturbance, etc.). Such natural oil spills
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may occur in oceans, due to eroding of sedimentary rocks from the bottom of the ocean (the
effect may be similar with that of an accidental oil spill from human drilling in oceans such as
the recent BP oil spill from the Gulf of Mexico).
Anthropogenic causes -These including accidental oil spills as well as leaks and spills due
to a large variety of human activities related to oil refining, handling and transport, storage
and use of crude oil and any of its distilled products.
Another classification: Oil spills can also be classified as Accidental spills and Intentional
spills.
Accidental Spills
Accidental spills may occur in various circumstances, most often during the following
activities:
Storage - oil and oil products may be stored in a variety of ways including underground
and aboveground storage tanks; such containers may develop leaks over time
Handling - during transfer operations and various uses
Transportation - these could be large oil spills (up to million and hundreds of million
gallons) on water or land through accidental rupture of big transporting vessels (e.g.,
tanker ships or tanker trucks). or smaller oil spills, through pipelines and other devices
also happens and their impact is mainly due to a large number of usually minor spills
Offshore drilling - we have recently experienced the massive oil spill in the Gulf of
Mexico, with its terrible consequences on the environment, marine life and humans as
the spill continues since April 22, 2010, and it may take a while until a solution is
implemented
Routine maintenance activities - such as cleaning of ships may release oil into
navigable waters. This may seem insignificant; however, due to the large number of
ships even a few gallons spilled per ship maintenance could build up to a substantial
number when all ships are considered
Road runoff - oily road runoff adds up especially on crowded roads. With many
precipitation events, the original small amounts of oil from regular traffic would get
moved around and may build up in our environment
Intentional oil discharges are not necessarily malevolent. Most of them occur in the following
circumstances:
Through drains or in the sewer system. This include any regular activities such as
changing car oil if the replaced oil is simply discharged into a drain or sewer system
Indirectly through the burning of fuels, including vehicle emissions; they release
various individual components of oils and oil products, such as a variety of
hydrocarbons (out of which benzene and PAHs could pose serious health risks).
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Case study:
The Ennore Oil Spill: A Lesson for India’s Maritime Agencies
On 28th January 2017 at about 3:45 AM, two ships MT Dawn Kanchipuram and MT BW
Maple collided; two nautical miles off the Kamarajar Port at Ennore, MT Dawn
Kanchipuram suffered damages, spilling tonnes of fuel oil into the sea.
The extent of damage became visible on the next day when large patches of oil started
appearing on the rocky shores close to Bharathiyar Nagar which is approximately 13 km
from the Kamarajar Port. Organized cleanup began on January 29th, 2017 and by this time
the oil had already reached the Ennore groin field.
As computed by INCOIS, the oil slick drifted along the Chennai coast up to 32km south and
beached at the Palavakkam beach on the East Coast Road. Later, about two weeks after
the incident, reports emerged that traces of oil were observed even along Pondicherry
coast, 180 km away from incident area. An oil spill, no matter how big or small is
considered a serious threat to marine environment. A study was undertaken immediately
after the spill to assess the ecological footprint and its effects on water quality and
biodiversity in the coastal areas of Chennai.
As expected, total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) concentration was significantly high.
However, other physico-chemical parameters were within normal range. Usually, in such
events, the planktons and vertebrates get affected due to their proximity with toxic
compounds floating on the sea surface, nonetheless, significant variations were not
observed.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
No mass mortality of fish occurred however few incidences of Mullets and Anchovies
deaths were reported by fishermen. Very few cases of dead Olive ridley turtle drenched
with oil were reported, however, the reason of their deaths is uncertain.
The impact of the spill has directly affected the local fishing community as there was a
sharp fall in fish sale due to the existing notion amongst public that fishes are contaminated
with oil and not fit to consume.
Bio-accumulation:
Bioaccumulation occurs within a trophic level. It is the increase in concentration of a
substance in certain tissues (usually in fatty tissue.) of organisms' bodies due to
absorption from food and the environment.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
2. Bioremediation-
It is a treatment that uses naturally occurring organisms to break down hazardous
substances into less toxic or non-toxic substances.
It uses microorganisms to degrade organic contaminants in soil, groundwater,
sludge, and solids.
The microorganisms break down contaminants by using them as an energy source
or metabolizing them with an energy source.
When Fungi are used, it is called myco-remediation. Bioremediation may be
conducted in situ or ex situ.
Oil Zappers, a 5set bacterial strain developed by TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute)
is used to bio remediate the oil.
For the first time this is used during the oil spill near Mumbai Coast in 2010.
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India has 12 major ports and near to 187 small and minor ports. These ports are regularly
used for transporting oil. Considering the large volume of oil that is being transported
probability of tanker accident is very high.
The Government has formulated the National Oil Spill –Disaster Contingency Plan (NOS-
DCP) of 1993, for establishing an integrated national system for responding promptly and
effectively to deal with any oil pollution incident.
The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is designated as the Central Coordinating Agency (CCA) for
marine oil spill response activities.
1. National Policy on Oil Spill Response need to be formulated for addressing effective
coordination and response during the event of oil spill.
2. Mapping of Oil Spill vulnerability Zones for implementing better mitigation and prevention
strategies.
3. Better use of technologies for monitoring and coordination. (GIS and Drone)
4. Contingency plans should be prepared at the cross border level to handle the inter border
spills.
5. Conducting regular awareness programs on Oil spills including the Port Authorities as the
major stakeholders. (Because ports are the major first responders and they should pass
information and take first incident response.)
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
2. ICT
To provide early warning
To educate the people regarding the various disasters and the precautions that
needs to be taken
Mobile communication
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All of the above examples clearly points to ways in which technology can be an
instrumental and vital part of the disaster management cycle, wherever in the world the
disaster might take place, and whatever sort of disaster it may be.
{Note: Write down the current issues related to new technologies in DM from the
current affairs notes or news paper}
Pre-disaster
The media can influence the government to prioritize Disaster Risk Issues.
For example, it may expose excessive and inefficient expenditure on disaster
preparedness in a particular region.
It can help disaster mitigation experts create early warning systems. Emergency alerts
using TV, radio, cable services across the country can be very effective.
To educate the community in recognising symptoms and reporting them early if found.
Ensuring cooperation of the community in risk reduction by forewarning the people about
the consequences of their dangerous actions and operations.
During disaster
During the disaster, what is of utmost importance is to keep the morale of the people
high, to create self-confidence in them and to prevent panic. The media can help, in
many ways in ensuring these conditions.
Continuous and factual coverage, particularly by local media, can assist the authorities,
voluntary organizations and volunteers in reaching the affected with assistance and
relief.
Cautioning the affected or to be affected people about the Dos and Don’ts, of scotching
rumours and preventing panic and confusion.
Identifying the needy spots and focusing attention on them, giving details on impassable
roadways and downed utility lines.
Communicating the information to the people and the concerned authorities sufficiently
in advance to enable them to take the necessary steps to minimize the losses of lives
and property.
It provides the outside world with a glimpse of what that affected community is dealing
with.
Post-disaster
Collection of material resources and the enlisting of man-power by appealing to the
people to come forward to render help.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Examples:
1. Live coverage of critical operations can disrupt the counter-terrorism strategy of the
forces, as was observed in Mumbai 26/11 attacks.
2. In their desire for TRPs and sensationalism, the media has overlooked basic ethics of
journalism. During the Nepal earthquake, media was severely criticized as well as during
the Uttarakhand floods, the visits of politicians was focused on rather than disaster
management.
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
Its role as a news source is invaluable with instantaneous information available with
power outages shutting down TV stations and landlines. Emergency service agencies
are utilising the power of social media and SMS to instantly broadcast and amplify
emergency warnings to the public.
Case Studies:
Use of Social Media during HudHud Cyclone:
During the devastating Hudhud cyclone that struck Visakhapatnam, PWD officials created
a WhatsApp group that acted as the main tool of communication for sharing information.
No meetings and discussions were organised at the district level as the WhatsApp group
helped identify and access required resources.
Therefore, social media cannot and should not supersede current approaches to disaster
management communication or replace existing infrastructure, but if managed strategically,
they can be used to bolster current systems.
{Note: Write down the current issues related to new initiatives by media in DM from
the current affairs notes or news paper}
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
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GS Paper-3: Disasters and Disaster Management
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