Community-based approaches are the key - Muzaffar Ahmed

"In the last ten years, community based approaches have come up as the key to addressing disaster concerns of the developing world. It needs to be stressed that to carry forward work in this direction everybody has to continue to work in partnership." - Dr. Muzaffar Ahmed, Member, National Disaster Management Authority, Government of India

A large number of initiatives have been taken in early warning where state-of-art-systems have been set up for India and the neighbouring countries. Government of India acknowledges the good work carried out by UN agencies, civil society groups, state governments, and national and international orgnisations that has tremendously helped build disaster management capacities in the country. The results are already visible in the large numbers of lives that have been saved due to quick action by all stakeholders and the communities themselves in some of the recent disasters.