The Hindu : Funding and managing disasters

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jun 10, 2003

Opinion

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Funding and managing disasters

A WORKING GROUP of the Crisis Management Group (CMG) has submitted its report to the Prime Minister. Headed by the former Defence Minister and NCP leader, Sharad Pawar, the group has taken a full two years to study the complex issues thrown up by major disasters such as the Gujarat earthquake. A full meeting of the CMG chaired by the Prime Minister will have to consider the report and make its final recommendations to the Government. On the face of it, the Rs. 500-crore corpus suggested to deal with major disasters is woefully inadequate. A task force headed by the Deputy Prime Minister is dealing with the problem of drought relief and there is already a raging controversy among the States on the routine allocation of funds by the Centre for the drought and flood relief demands. Of course, this too is managed on the basis of a calamity relief fund and a formula for the distribution of relief to the affected States. And yet, year after year, it is the same story. Last year, the Centre released a second instalment of Rs. 578 crores as its share from the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) to the affected States, when they were claiming anywhere from Rs. 500 crores to Rs. 2,000 crores. The CMG can also evolve a more acceptable formula for assistance under the CRF, though it cannot be carried away by the exaggerated demands of the States.

In dealing with routine, annual disasters like those caused by floods and droughts for instance, it is unfortunate that some State Governments seem to suffer from lethargy and by the time they get into the action mode, it becomes too late for the people. And when there is a `super cyclone' like the one that struck Orissa, the administration appears paralysed. What is lacking here is a preventive approach. With better coordination and weather forecast, a district administration must be empowered to take all preventive measures to save lives and property before a cyclone strikes. An unfortunate scenario that parts of India witness, rather painfully every year, is floods in one State and acute drought in another. The linking of rivers to form a regional grid may be the ultimate solution to this peculiar problem and this massive project needs a push from all sides to get off the ground. The task force, headed by Suresh Prabhu, is doing its job now and the Centre as well as the States must work together to realise the fruits of such integration of natural and precious resources. There is need to build a regional coordination network so that foodgrains and other essential supplies can be rushed from the nearest centre, without getting bogged down with jurisdictional problems. At least in times of disaster, leaders must keep politics out of relief and learn to work together to help the victims.

The CMG and Mr. Pawar's working group must have also dealt with the more serious disasters like the earthquakes in Latur or the more recent one in Gujarat. Of course, aid for such occasions flows not only from within the country, but also from abroad. But the CMG should lay down a framework for managing such catastrophes. There has to be an apex body which can monitor and coordinate all efforts to bring early relief to the hapless victims and utilise every bit of the donations that pour in almost instantaneously. But, when the Centre takes such major disasters into account, a corpus of just Rs. 500 crores seems too insignificant to inspire any confidence. The CMG must evolve a disaster management drill, a mechanism that will immediately take over the coordination work and channel all the aid. The States too must be told to remain in a state of preparedness, identify the key departments and officials who will take charge and a control room that can closely monitor the developments.

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