The Centre’s move to introduce a bill in parliament seeking to create a “disaster database at national and state level” and make provision for the constitution of the ‘Urban Disaster Management Authority’ is a welcome one. It is crucial that big cities, which have now become synonymous with floods and other disasters, set up management teams to tackle disasters rather than seeking aid from the Army.
The absence of such a team was felt during the recent deluge in Pune as the people had to wait for a long time to be rescued. Moreover, it has been found that on numerous occasions, shortage of rubber boats and life jackets severely hampered rescue operations. Such problems can be resolved with the formation of disaster management groups at ground level, as they will be equipped with adequate rescue materials in accordance with the population density of the area.
But perhaps what is more urgent than city-disaster management groups is a re-examination of India’s urban planning policy. The problems that urban India faces today are the result of improper planning and the ruthless destruction of natural resources. These problems have been compounded by ineffective urban bodies, which have failed to ensure safe and healthy living for their citizens.
As a matter of fact, no Indian city has standardised safety norms to save lives in the wake of a disaster. This fact was highlighted by the Supreme Court during the hearing on the deaths of three civil service aspirants in a Delhi coaching centre. The court has also found a tendency towards shifting blame on others and avoiding accountability. A prerequisite for the government’s plan to succeed is accountability from all stakeholders.
Starting from the heads of the disaster management groups to the highest authorities managing city affairs, everyone should be held responsible if they fail in their duties. The tendency to blame each other or cite paucity of funds as the reason behind failures should not be tolerated. Take Mumbai, for instance. Its municipality body is one of the richest local bodies in India, yet the city gets battered by monsoons every year and thus far, the cash-rich municipality has not been able to prevent it.
What is more worrying is that civic problems in Mumbai will further aggravate by 2050, when the population of the megacity will double. The government and local bodies need to formulate a plan to maintain a standard for living conditions. Furthermore, a new township in Kolkata has come up on the eastern part of the city, destroying wetlands, which have long served as the natural drainage of the city. This is why, despite planning, it gets submerged quite easily, forcing people to take shelter in safer localities. Thus, all big cities in the country urgently require a re-haul to ensure safe living conditions, which in turn will make the job of the disaster management groups much easier.