Psychosocial care and internally displaced people need to be considered - K.M.Parivelan

"Strengthen practice of the International Disaster Response Law (IDRL); and identify and address risks in a time bound manner." - Dr. K.M.Parivelan, Associate Professor, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India

Reflections on the improvements

• Early warning: Improvements in the field of early warning is tremendous in detection of hazard stage, but we still lack proper last mile connectivity. One example is INCOIS detects the tsunami waves, but there is no real time sharing via website of INCOIS or other national DM bodies. Further there can be Television scrolls and Mobile alerts for those near the coast or sea shores automatically. We need to improve towards true 'end to end early warning system'.
• Governance Structures: We need to uniformly revamp SDMAs, DDMAs up to PRIs in all states. The excuse of Union-State federal relations is delicate is not acceptable. We need to show that we are a unified robust disaster resilient India. So we need to develop indicators and monitor the progress of comprehensive and integrated disaster management systems. Some kind of incentive (for those who perform) and punishment (for those who underperform) is needed. Because those who are maintaining SDMAs in paper is unacceptable. Constant review and update is required in all levels.
• Awareness and Education: We have to improvise the DRR in Schools and colleges in appropriate manner with lots of case examples and in simple practical manner. Long way to go to incorporate in State levels in various vernacular mediums.
• Vulnerability reduction and Disaster Preparedness: The Post tsunami shelter programmes had vulnerability reduction features vis-a-vis multi hazard resiliences. Disaster preparedness got fused well up to SHG levels (E.g. Samiyarpettai in Cuddalore district) where women were sustaining it for a long time.

New challenges that have emerged for disaster risk reduction over the last 10 years

• Lessons of Post tsunami recovery needs to be incorporated in national planning: Uneven disaster response is puzzling. We have encouraged better disaster response during the post tsunami recovery from the lessons of Odhisa super cyclone and Bhuj earthquake (e.g. Quick body decomposing chemicals was used in high water table coastal areas for disposing the dead or Joint housing entitlements for woman and spouse for post tsunami shelter). The psycho social care as per UN Guiding Principles Principle no. 19 “When necessary, internally displaced persons shall have access to psychological and social services” was done elaborately during post tsunami relief and recovery but these benchmarks in disaster response were not visible during later disasters like Kashmir earthquake or Kosi floods.
• The link between DRR and climate change adaptation and mitigation is missing. We need to address it in comprehensive and integrated manner.
• Sustaining DRR in general and CBDRR in particular is challenging. We need to create DRR fund from developmental activities by mainstreaming DRR in to development

Your message to world leaders

• As per UN Guiding Principles 25 and 30 respectively, “All authorities concerned shall grant and facilitate the free passage of humanitarian assistance and grant persons engaged in the provision of such assistance rapid and unimpeded access to the internally displaced” and “All authorities concerned shall grant and facilitate for international humanitarian organizations and other appropriate actors, in the exercise of their respective mandates, rapid and unimpeded access to internally displaced persons to assist in their return or resettlement and reintegration”. In this regard we need to strengthen the “Guidelines for the domestic facilitation and regulation of international disaster relief and initial recovery assistance” also known as the “IDRL (International Disaster Response Law) promoted by IFRC. It is to be noted that the UN General Assembly adopted three resolutions (Res. 63/139, 63/141, and 63/137) encouraging states to make use of the IDRL Guidelines. Many countries are yet to incorporate these inputs in their respective national legislations or practice.
• Identifying risks in a time bound manner and addressing them (HFA Action 4) needs proper emphasis and focus during the forthcoming International DM conference .