Equalisation Levy

Part of: GS-III- Economy (PT-MAINS-PERSONALITY TEST)

Recently, the Central government has stated that it will not extend the deadline for payment of the equalisation levy by non-resident e-commerce players, even though a majority of them are yet to deposit the first instalment of the tax.

**The equalization levy is aimed at taxing foreign companies which have a significant local client base in India but are billing them through their offshore units, effectively escaping the country’s tax system. The step has come in the backdrop of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) investigations into taxes adopted or under consideration by 10 nations, including India, on revenues of American digital service companies like Netflix, Airbnb, etc.

Background for Equalization Levy:

• Equalisation levy at 6% has been in force since 2016 on payments exceeding Rs 1 lakh a year to a non-resident service provider for online advertisements.
• It is now applicable for e-commerce companies that are sourcing revenue from Indian customers without having a tangible presence here in the country.
• The amendments to the Finance Act, 2020 had expanded the ambit of the equalisation levy for non-resident e-commerce operators involved in the supply of services, including the online sale of goods and provision of services, with the levy at the rate of 2% effective April 1, 2020.
• The tax applies to e-commerce transactions on websites such as Amazon.com. Google in particular as the tax applies on advertising revenue earned overseas if those ads target customers in India.

Changes in Challan ITNS 285:

• The income tax department has modified challan ITNS 285 (relating to the payment of equalization levy) to enable payment of the first installment by non-resident e-commerce operators. The challan also seeks mandatory PAN and provides for the ‘Outside India’ option while seeking an address.

Penalties Involved:

• The non-payment could result in a penalty equal to the amount of the equalisation levy, along with interest. The late payment would attract interest at the rate of 1% per month or part of the month.
• India is racing towards becoming a digital giant and should be negotiated to avoid any hurdles in its implementation. Further, there needs to be an international consensus on taxation on a digital economy.

India and USA agree on a transitional approach on Equalisation Levy 2020

• On October 8, 2021, India and United States joined 134 other members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework (including Austria, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom) in reaching an agreement on the Statement on a Two-Pillar Solution to Address the Tax Challenges Arising from the Digitalization of the Economy.

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• On October 21, 2021, the United States AND Austria, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom reached an agreement on a transitional approach to existing Unilateral Measures while implementing Pillar 1. The agreement is reflected in the joint statement that was issued by those six countries on that date (“October 21 Joint Statement”).
• India and United States have agreed that the same terms that apply under the October 21 Joint Statement shall apply between the United States and India with respect to India’s charge of 2% equalisation levy on e-commerce supply of services and the United States’ trade action regarding the said Equalisation Levy. However, the interim period that will be applicable will be from 1st April 2022 till the implementation of Pillar One or 31st March 2024, whichever is earlier.
• India and United States will remain in close contact to ensure that there is a common understanding of the respective commitments and endeavor to resolve any further differences of views on this matter through constructive dialogue.
• The final terms of the Agreement shall be finalized by 1st February 2022.

• Context: Public infrastructure is essential for enhancing the quality of public life and social capital. Guiding by her promise of DIGITAL INDIA and access to all the MINIMUM Internet GoI came out with PM-WANI. This topic is highy important for UPSC-PT and Mains.
• Union Cabinet cleared a document by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to set up public Wi-Fi access-PM-WANI network interfaces, first recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in 2017.

About

This will involve multiple players, including PDOs, PDOAs, app providers, and a central registry.

WHY WE NEED

• To increase the proliferation of internet services in the country. With PDOs - which will basically be small retail outlets across the length and breadth of the country - last mile connectivity is being aimed at.
• To offer a cost-effective option for the CITIZENS. Even in urban areas with sufficient mobile data coverage, the mobile internet tariffs are bound to increase.
• To make the ‘Digital India’ vision successul. From 2015 to June of 2020, India grew from 302 million internet subscribers to 750 million. That is a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 20%, making India one of the fastest growing internet markets in the world. However, this statistic overshadows the quality of access. Only 23 million are wired internet subscribers. If Digital India vision is to be achieved, there is a need to deliver a resilient and reliable connection to every Indian, so that they can have reliable access everywhere, at affordable price points.

**According to Digital Quality of Life Index 2020, India was placed at 9^th position in Internet Affordability, outperforming even countries like the UK, the USA and China. While, for Internet Quality and E-infrastructure, India was almost at the bottom of the pillar placed at 78^th and 79^th (out of 85) positions respectively.

Benefits:
2 crore jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities, besides offering a cost-effective means of mass connectivity.

• To achieve National Digital Communications Policy goals of creating 1 crore public Wi-Fi hotspots by 2022
• Creation of demand and scope for developing the components for this pan-India activity Atmanirbhar Bharat.
• Local distribution centres for content. Students in backward and rural areas can access offline content without using bandwidth.
• Benefit to MSME and digital banking.
• It will further ease of Doing Business and Ease of Living, as it will enable small shopkeepers to provide Wi-Fi service.

Challenges:
Most Wi-Fi hotspots don’t encrypt information therefore threat of HACKING and personal information. But Indian public Wi-Fi hotspot network envisages that the access to the Internet through these points will be permitted only through electronic KYC (Know Your Customer) and a mix of OTP (One-Time Password) and MAC ID-based authentication system, thereby minimising the risk of network security being compromised.

• The viability of the project. In 2017, social media company Facebook had launched Express Wi-Fi. The project made little impact. Google’s Station project, to provide free wi-fi in more than 400 railway stations across India and “thousands” of other public places, which was launched in 2015, was shut down earlier this year.
• Challenge of Infrastructure and its maintenance.
• Awareness and reliability in condition of speed.

It is the time that government must ensure true unbundling of hardware, software, apps and payment gateways in the WANI system, as advocated by TRAI, to prevent monopolies. Existing public wi-fi options run on a limited scale by some entities compel consumers to pay through a single gateway app, underscoring the need for reform.

PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY): Critical Analysis

• Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY) is a scheme as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat to supply free food grains to migrants and the poor.
• Under this special scheme (PMGKAY), around 80 Crore NFSA beneficiaries covered under both categories of NFSA, namely Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Householders (PHH), will be provided with an additional quota of free-of-cost foodgrains (Rice/Wheat) at a scale of 5 Kg per person per month, over and above their regular monthly entitlements under NFSA.
• Government of India will bear all expenditure of over ?26,000 Crore on account of food subsidy and Central assistance to states/UTs on account of intrastate transportation etc.
• During the period May - November 2021, more than 81.35 crore people will be provided 5 kg free wheat/rice per person/month along with 1 kg free whole chana to each family per month. Wheat has been allocated to 6 States/UTs, - Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Chandigarh, Delhi and Gujarat and rice has been provided to the remaining States/UTs. This is over and above the regular monthly entitlements under National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA).

Eligibility

• Families belonging to the Below Poverty Line - Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Households (PHH) categories will be eligible for the scheme.
• PHH are to be identified by State Governments/Union Territory Administrations as per criteria evolved by them. A families are to be identified by States/UTs as per the criteria prescribed by the Central Government:
• Households headed by widows or terminally ill persons or disabled persons or persons aged 60 years or more with no assured means of subsistence or societal support.
• Widows or terminally ill persons or disabled persons or persons aged 60 years or more or single women or single men with no family or societal support or assured means of subsistence.
• All primitive tribal households.
• Landless agriculture labourers, marginal farmers, rural artisans/craftsmen such as potters, tanners, weavers, blacksmiths, carpenters, slum dwellers, and persons earning their livelihood on daily basis in the informal sector like porters, coolies, rickshaw pullers, hand cart pullers, fruit and flower sellers, snake charmers, rag pickers, cobblers, destitute and other similar categories in both rural and urban areas.
• All eligible Below Poverty Line families of HIV-positive persons.

30% of PMGKAY recipients yet to get grains for May

• Almost a third of all ration card holders are yet to get their free foodgrains allocation for May under the Centre’s COVID-19 relief scheme, according to the Food Ministry.
• Out of the 79.25 crore beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), only 55 crores have so far received their 5 kg per person quota of free wheat or rice under the Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), which was announced to mitigate the economic distress caused by the pandemic. Thus, more than 30% have still not gotten their benefit.
• However, almost 90% of beneficiaries have received their regular subsidised grain for the month, raising questions over why the free grain has reached fewer beneficiaries.
• An analysis of NFSA data shows that the only major States which have significant coverage gaps are Himachal Pradesh (23%), Madhya Pradesh (14%) and Gujarat (9%). Most other large States have less than a 5% gap, which can be used to issue new ration cards.
• In a May 24 order, the Supreme Court had directed that migrant workers and poor people without ration cards should be provided with dry ration under the Atma Nirbhar scheme — which was implemented last year — or any other scheme found suitable by the States and Centre.

National Food Security Act, 2013

• In PUCL vs Union of India, SC said Right to food is essential to Right to Life (Art 21). Hence NFSA has a rights based approach. Objective is to provide for food and nutritional security in the human life cycle approach.
• All the above schemes PDS, RPDS, and TPDS are merged except Antyodaya Anna Yojana which will continue to give 35 kg to the poorest of the poor.
• It covers 67% population (75% Rural and 50% Urban). Beneficiaries will be taken from SECC.
• People will get 5 kgs of foodgrains per person per month upto 5 family members at subsidised prices of Rs. 3/2/1 per Kg for rice/wheat/coarse grains. It uses TPDS mechanism.
• Special nutritional support to women and children.
  1. It includes meal to Pregnant women and lactating mothers during pregnancy and 6 months after child birth. They are entitled to a nutritious "take home ration" of 600 Calories and a maternity benefit of >= Rs 6,000 for 6 months. Hence, PMMVY is merged. 5000 + 1000 rs under Janani Suraksha Yojana.
  2. Children upto 14 years will get nutritious meals.
• If there is no supply in 15 days, then beneficiaries will get Food Security Allowance.
• Grievance redressal mechanism at District and State levels. Transparency and Accountability to be ensured.
• Food fortification = Rice with Protein; Wheat with Zinc and Coarse Cereals with Iron.
• Utilisation of Dryland area agriculture which is 52% land.
• Development of Wasteland to generate 250 million tonnes additional production.
• In Chandigarh, Puducherry and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, act is impemented in cash transfer mode and they will have the choice to buy foodgrains from open market.
• The eldest woman in a household, >= 18 years, shall be the head of the household for the purpose of issuance of a ration card.

ACROSS Scheme

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today gave its approval for the continuation of the umbrella scheme "Atmosphere & Climate Research-Modelling Observing Systems & Services (ACROSS)" along with its eight sub-schemes to the next finance cycle of five years i.e. 2021-2026 at an estimated cost of Rs.2,135 crore.

ACROSS Scheme

• One of the mandates of the Ministry of Earth Sciences is to observe the weather, climate, and ocean parameters and carry out R&D activities to develop and improve the capability to forecast weather, climate, and hazard-related phenomena for societal, economic, and environmental benefits including addressing the science of climate change and developing climate services.

• The increased incidence of extreme weather events due to Global Climate change and the risk associated with severe weather has prompted MoES to formulate many target-oriented programs, which are carried out in an integrated manner through IMD, IITM, NCMRWF, and INCOIS. As a result, these activities are put together under the umbrella scheme "ACROSS".
• ACROSS scheme pertains to the atmospheric science programs of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and addresses different aspects of weather and climate services. Each of these aspects is incorporated as eight sub-schemes under the umbrella scheme "ACROSS" and is implemented in an integrated manner through the aforesaid four institutes.
• The scheme is being implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) through its units namely the India Meteorological Department (IMD), National Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF); Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), and Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS).

The eight sub-schemes under the ACROSS scheme are multi-disciplinary in nature and will be implemented in an integrated manner through IMD, IITM, NCMRWF, and INCOIS to cover all the aspects of the weather and climate. Each institute has a designated role for accomplishing the above tasks through the following eight schemes:

1. Commissioning of Polarimetric Doppler Weather Radars (DWRs)-IMD
2. Upgradation of Forecast System-IMD
3. Weather & Climate Services-IMD
4. Atmospheric Observations Network-IMD
5. Numerical Modelling of Weather and Climate -NCMRWF
6. Monsoon Mission III- IITM/NCMRWF/INCOIS/IMD
7. (vii) Monsoon Convection, Clouds and Climate Change (MC4)- IITM/NCMRWF/IMD
8. High-Performance Computing System (HPCS)-IITM/NCMRWF

Impact of ACROSS Scheme

• The scheme will provide improved weather, climate, ocean forecast and services, and other hazard-related services thereby ensuring transfer of commensurate benefits to the end-user through various services like Public weather service, Agro-meteorological Services, Aviation Services, Environmental monitoring services, Hydro-meteorological services, climate services, tourism, pilgrimage, power generation, water management, Sports & adventure, etc.
• The whole process from the generation of forecast to its delivery requires considerable manpower at every stage, thereby generating employment opportunities for many people.

O SMART Scheme

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today gave its approval for the continuation of the umbrella scheme "Ocean Services, Modelling, Application, Resources, and Technology (O-SMART)" of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, for implementation during the period from 2021-26 at an overall cost of Rs. 2177 crore.

What is O SMART Scheme?

• The scheme encompasses seven sub-schemes namely Ocean Technology, Ocean Modelling and Advisory Services (OMAS), Ocean Observation Network (OON), Ocean Non-Living Resources, Marine Living Resources and Ecology (MLRE), Coastal Research and Operation and Maintenance of Research Vessels.
• These sub-schemes are being implemented by autonomous/attached institutes of the Ministry, viz.

1. National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai;
2. Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad;
3. National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa,
4. Center for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE), Kochi;
5. and National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), Chennai as well as involving other national institutes.

• A fleet of oceanographic and coastal research vessels of the Ministry provides required research support for the scheme.
• O SMART scheme being a multidisciplinary continuing scheme, the ongoing extensive research, and technology development activities would augment capacity building of the nation in the oceanographic field at the international level. The present decade has been declared as the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development by the United Nations (UN) and the continuation of the scheme would strengthen our stand in the global oceanographic research and technology development. This continuation of the scheme would contribute significantly towards national policy on blue economy for effective and efficient use of the vast ocean resources in a sustainable way.
• Efforts towards achieving United Nations Sustainable Development Goal-14 to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources are being covered through coastal research and marine biodiversity activities.
• A significant contribution to the national GDP is being made and to be continued through the ocean advisory services and technologies developed benefiting communities and several sectors working in the marine environment, particularly in the coastal states of India.
• In the next five years (2021-26) this scheme would provide further comprehensive coverage through strengthening the ongoing activities towards delivering cutting edge technology applicable for a marine domain, forecast and warning services to various coastal stakeholders, understanding biodiversity towards conservation strategy for marine living organisms and understanding coastal processes.

History of Ocean Research

• The research and technology development pertaining to oceans in India was initiated by the Department of Ocean Development (DoD), which was set up in 1981 which later merged with to Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and continuing since then.
• MoES has achieved a significant position in Oceanographic research through technology developments, forecast services, field installations, explorations, surveys, technology demonstrations towards national benefits.
• The O SMART scheme encompassing oceanographic research activities is being implemented with the objectives for providing forecasts and services based on the continuous observation of our oceans, development of technologies, and exploratory surveys for the sustainable harnessing of our oceanic resources (both living and non-living) and promotion of front-ranking research in ocean sciences.
• Several major milestones have been achieved through the activities of the scheme, the most significant is India's recognition as Pioneer Investor with International Seabed Authority (ISA) for conducting extensive research on deep-sea mining of Poly Metallic Nodules (PMN) and hydrothermal sulphides in the allotted area of the India Ocean.
• The technology development for desalination using low-temperature thermal desalination installation of such facility in Lakshadweep islands is also a significant achievement.
• Moreover, India's ocean-related activities are now extended from the Arctic to the Antarctic region covering large ocean space which has been monitored by through in-situ and satellite-based observation. India has taken a leadership role in implementing the Indian Ocean component of the Global Ocean Observing System in Intergovernmental.
• Oceanographic Commission through a wide range of observations networks including both moored and drifters' types have been deployed and maintained in the Indian Ocean.
• This observation network yields ocean forecast services for potential fishing ground and natural coastal hazards warning for storm surge associated with cyclones and Tsunami to stakeholders at nations levels as well as neighboring countries.
• A state-of-the-art early warning system for oceanic disasters viz. tsunami, storm surges, has been established at INCOIS, Hyderabad to provide services for India and countries of the Indian Ocean, which have been recognized by UNESCO.
• Extensive surveys along the Indian exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf of India is conducted for national benefits towards identifying ocean resources, Ocean related advisory services, navigation, etc. Assessment of living resources in the EEZ and deep ocean of India including mapping of the living resources has been undertaken for the marine ecosystem with the goal for Conservation and protection of Marine Biodiversity.
• The Ministry has been also monitoring the health of the coastal waters of India including shoreline changes and marine ecosystems.

Disaster Management in India

Part of: GS-III- Disaster Management (PT-MAINS-PERSONALITY TEST)

Disruption on a massive scale, either natural or man-made, occurring in short or long periods of time is termed a Disaster. Disaster management in India has been an important point of discussion owing to frequent natural disasters ranging from earthquakes, floods, drought etc.

What is a Disaster?

A disaster is defined as a disruption on a massive scale, either natural or man-made, occurring in short or long periods of time. Disasters can lead to human, material, economic or environmental hardships, which can be beyond the bearable capacity of the affected society. As per statistics, India as a whole is vulnerable to 30 different types of disasters that will affect the economic, social and human development potential to such an extent that it will have long-term effects on productivity and macro-economic performance.

Disasters can be classified into the following categories:

• Water and Climate Disaster: Flood, hail storms, cloudbursts, cyclones, heat waves, cold waves, droughts, hurricanes.
• Geological Disaster: Landslides, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tornadoes
• Biological Disaster: Viral epidemics, pest attacks, cattle epidemics and locust plagues
• Industrial Disaster: Chemical and industrial accidents, mine shaft fires, oil spills,
• Nuclear Disasters: Nuclear core meltdowns, radiation poisoning
• Man-made disasters: Urban and forest fires, oil spills, the collapse of huge building structures

What is Disaster Management?

Per the Disaster Management Act of 2005 defines Disaster Management as an integrated process of planning, organizing, coordinating and implementing measures which are necessary for-

1. Prevention of threat of any disaster
2. Reduction of risk of any disaster or its consequences
3. Readiness to deal with any disaster
4. Promptness in dealing with a disaster
5. Assessing the severity of the effects of any disaster
6. Rescue and relief
7. Rehabilitation and Reconstruction

Agencies involved in Disaster Management

• National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA):- The National Disaster Management Authority, or the NDMA, is an apex body for disaster management, headed by the Prime Minister of India. It is responsible for the supervision, direction and control of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).
• National Executive Committee (NEC):- The NEC is composed of high-profile ministerial members from the government of India that include the Union Home Secretary as Chairperson, and the Secretaries to the Government of India (GoI)like Ministries/Departments of Agriculture, Atomic Energy, Defence, Drinking Water Supply, Environment and Forests etc. The NEC prepares the National Plan for Disaster Management as per the National Policy on Disaster Management.
• State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA):- The Chief Minister of the respective state is the head of the SDMA.The State Government has a State Executive Committee (SEC) which assists the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) in Disaster Management.
• District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA):- The DDMA is headed by the District Collector, Deputy Commissioner or District Magistrate depending on the situation, with the elected representatives of the local authority as the Co-Chairperson. The DDMA ensures that the guidelines framed by the NDMA and the SDMA are followed by all the departments of the State Government at the District level and the local authorities in the District.
• Local Authorities:- Local authorities would include Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI), Municipalities, District and Cantonment 11 Institutional and Legal Arrangements Boards, and Town Planning Authorities which control and manage civic services.

Causes for Occurrence of Disaster

• Environmental degradation: Removal of trees and forest cover from a watershed area has caused, soil erosion, expansion of flood plain area in upper and middle course of rivers and groundwater depletion.
• Developmental process: Exploitation of land use, development of infrastructure, rapid urbanization and technological development have caused increasing pressure over natural resources.
• Political issues: War, nuclear power aspirations, fight between countries to become a superpower and conquering land, sea and skies. These have resulted in a wide range of disaster events such as the Hiroshima nuclear explosion, the Syrian civil war, growing militarisation of oceans and outer space.
• Industrialization: This has resulted in the warming of the earth and the frequency of extreme weather events has also increased.

Impacts of Disaster

• Disaster impacts individuals physically (through loss of life, injury, health, disability) as well as psychologically.
• Disaster results in huge economic loss due to the destruction of property, human settlements and infrastructure etc.
• Disaster can alter the natural environment, loss of habitat to many plants and animals and cause ecological stress that can result in biodiversity loss.
• After natural disasters, food and other natural resources like water often become scarce resulting in food and water scarcity.
• The disaster results in the displacement of people, and displaced populations often face several challenges in new settlements, in this process poorer become poorer.
• Disaster increases the level of vulnerability and hence multiplies the effects of the disaster.

Vulnerability Profile of India

• India is vulnerable, in varying degrees, to a large number of disasters. Around 59% of the landmass is prone to earthquakes of moderate to very high intensity.
• About 12% (over 40 million hectares) of its land is prone to floods and river erosion.
• Close to 5,700 km, out of the 7,516 km long coastline is prone to cyclones and tsunamis.
• 68% of its cultivable area is vulnerable to droughts; and, the hilly areas are at risk from landslides and avalanches.
• Moreover, India is also vulnerable to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) emergencies and other man-made disasters.
• Disaster risks in India are further compounded by increasing vulnerabilities related to changing demographics and socio-economic conditions, unplanned urbanization, development within high-risk zones, environmental degradation, climate change, geological hazards, epidemics and pandemics.
• Clearly, all of these contribute to a situation where disasters seriously threaten India’s economy, its population and sustainable development.

Worst Disasters in India

• Kashmir Floods (2014) affected Srinagar, Bandipur, Rajouri etc. areas of J&K have resulted in the death of more than 500 people.
• Uttarakhand Flash Floods (2013) affected Govindghat, Kedar Dome, Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand and resulted in the death of more than 5,000 people.
• The Indian Ocean Tsunami (2004) affected parts of southern India and Andaman Nicobar Islands, Sri Lanka, Indonesia etc., and resulted in the death of more than 2 lakh people.
• Gujarat Earthquake (2001) affected Bhuj, Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Kutch, Surat, Surendranagar, Rajkot district, Jamnagar and Jodia districts of Gujarat and resulted in the death of more than 20,000 people.
• Odisha Super Cyclone or Paradip cyclone (1999) affected the coastal districts of Bhadrak, Kendrapara, Balasore, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Ganjam etc., and resulted in the death of more than 10,000 people.
• The Great Famine (1876-1878) affected Madras, Mysore, Hyderabad, and Bombay and resulted in the death of around 3 crore people. Even today, it is considered one of the worst natural calamities in India of all time.
• Coringa Cyclone (1839) which affected the Coringa district of Andhra Pradesh and the Calcutta Cyclone (1737) are some other instances of natural calamities faced by the country in the past.
• The Bengal Famine in the years 1770 and 1943 affected Bengal, Odisha, and Bihar very badly and resulted in the death of nearly 1 crore people.
• Bhopal Gas tragedy (December 1984) is one of the worst chemical disasters globally that resulted in over 10,000 losing their lives (the actual number remains disputed) and over 5.5 lakh persons affected and suffering from agonizing injuries.
• In recent times, there have been
  • cases of railway accidents (Dussehra gathering on the railway tracks crushed by the trains in 2018),
  • fire accidents in hospitals due to negligence and non-implementation of existing mandatory fire safety norms,
  • the collapse of various infrastructure constructs like flyovers, metro tracks and residential buildings due to poor quality of construction, illegal addition of floors and recurring floods.
  • Stampede at large public gatherings like Kumbh Mela is caused by poor people management and a lack of adequate infrastructure to monitor and manage large crowd gatherings.

Stages in Disaster Management

• Disaster Management efforts are geared toward disaster risk management.
• Disaster Risk Management implies the systematic process of using administrative decisions, organisation, operational skills, and capacities to implement policies, strategies and coping capacities of the society and communities to lessen the impact of natural hazards and related environmental and technological disasters.
• These comprise all forms of all activities including structural and non-structural measures to avoid (prevention) or to limit (mitigation and preparedness) adverse effects of hazards.
• There are three key stages of activities in disaster management:

1. Before a disaster: to reduce the potential for human, material, or environmental losses caused by hazards and to ensure that these losses are minimised when disaster strikes;
2. During a disaster: to ensure that the needs and provisions of victims are met to alleviate and minimise suffering; and
3. After a disaster: to achieve rapid and durable recovery which does not reproduce the original vulnerable conditions.

• The different phases of disaster management are represented in the disaster cycle diagram.

Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR)

• Disaster risk reduction is the concept and practice of reducing disaster risks through systematic efforts to analyse and reduce the causal factors of disasters.
• Pre-Disaster risk reduction includes-
  • Mitigation: To eliminate or reduce the impacts and risks of hazards through proactive measures taken before an emergency or disaster occurs.
  • Preparedness: To take steps to prepare and reduce the effects of disasters.
• Post-Disaster risk reduction includes-
  • Rescue: Providing warning, evacuation, search, rescue, providing immediate assistance.
  • Relief: To respond to communities who become victims of disaster, providing relief measures such as food packets, water, medicines, temporary accommodation, relief camps etc.
  • Recovery: This stage emphasises upon recovery of victims of disaster, recovery of damaged infrastructure and repair of the damages caused.

Disaster Risk Reduction in Sustainable Development Goals

• Goal 1: Target 1.5, which relates to building the resilience of the poor, further strengthens the position of disaster risk reduction as a core development strategy for ending extreme poverty.
• Goal 2: Target 2.4 supports the immediate need to advance actions in mainstreaming disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation into agriculture sector planning and investments in order to promote resilient livelihoods, food production and ecosystems.
• Goal 3: Target 3.d, relates to strengthening early warning and risk reduction of national and global health risks presents an opportunity to further actions to promote resilient health.
• Goal 4: Target 4.7 focuses on building and upgrading education facilities and promoting education for sustainable development, contributing significantly to resilience-building in the education sector.’
• Goal 6: Target 6.6, which relates to protecting and restoring water-related ecosystems, will significantly contribute to strengthening the resilience of communities to water-related hazards.
• Goal 9: Targets 9.1 related to developing sustainable and resilient infrastructure development are vital not only to protect existing infrastructure but also for future infrastructure investments.
• Goal 11: Action targets under this goal (11.1, 11.3, 11.4, 11.5, 11.b and 11. c) focus on upgrading urban slums, integrated urban planning, reducing social and economic impacts of disaster risk, building the resilience of the urban poor, adopting and implementing urban policies in line with the Sendai Framework and building sustainable and resilient urban infrastructure, are strategic opportunities to ensure increased capacity to support cities, to protect current and future development prospects and to build safer, more resilient cities throughout the world.
• Goal 13: Target actions under this goal, focusing on strengthening resilience and adaptive capacity, capacity building and integrating climate change measures into policies and plans, awareness-raising on climate adaptation and early warning (Targets 13.1 to 13.3 and 13. a to 13. b) provide opportunities to strengthen the integration between disaster and climate resilience and to protect broader development paths at all levels.
• Goal 14: Target action 14.2, focusing on the sustainable management and protection as well as strengthening the resilience of marine and coastal ecosystems, can contribute to reducing disaster risk and increasing in demand for healthy marine and coastal ecosystems.
• Goal 15: Target actions 15.1 to 15.4 and 15.9, focus on managing and restoring forests, combating land degradation and desertification, conserving mountain ecosystems and their biodiversity and integrating ecosystem and biodiversity values into national and local planning, development processes, and poverty reduction strategies.
• These targets are also in line with the Sendai Framework's focus on building environmental resilience through the inclusion of ecosystems in risk analysis and planning.

Challenges in Disaster Risk Reduction

• There are insufficient levels of implementation for each monitored activity. For example, Disaster risk management plans or risk-sensitive building codes exist but they are not enforced because of a lack of government capacity or public awareness.
• There is a lack of local capacities to implement disaster risk management. Weak capacity at the local levels undermines the implementation of Disaster preparedness plans.
• Absence of integration of climate change into disaster risk management plans.
• There is a divergence of obtaining political and economic commitments due to other competing needs and priorities such as poverty reduction, social welfare, education etc. require greater attention and funding.
• Due to poor coordination between stakeholders, there is inadequate access with respect to risk assessment, monitoring, early warning, disaster response and other Disaster-related activities.
• Insufficient investment in building disaster-resilient strategies, also the private sector are the least contributors to the share of investment.

Organisations related to Disaster Management Framework at Global level

• In 1994 the World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction was held in Yokohama, Japan.
  • The conference adopted the Yokohama strategy and declared the decade 1990-2000 as the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR).
• United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) is the successor to the secretariat of IDNDR and was created in 1999 to implement the UN Disaster Risk Reduction strategy.
• The Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) is a 10-year plan (2005-2015) to make the world safer from natural hazards. Priorities such as Disaster risk reduction, identification, assessment through legal and policy frameworks, disaster preparedness and use of innovation was adopted.
• The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, is the successor instrument to the Hyogo Framework.
  • It is a non-binding agreement, which the signatory nations, including India, will attempt to comply with on a voluntary basis.
• There are three international agreements within the context of the post- 2015 development agenda. These are:
  • The Sendai Framework.
  • Sustainable Development Goals 2015-2030
  • The Paris agreement (COP 21) on Climate Change.
• These three agreements recognize the desired outcomes in Disaster Risk Reduction as a product of interconnected social and economic processes, which overlap across the agendas of the three agreements.

Organisations Policies related to Disaster Management Framework at the National level

National Disaster Management Authority of India (NDMA)

• It was established in 2005, under the Disaster Management Act 2005.
• The objective of NDMA is, to build a safer and disaster-resilient India through a holistic, proactive, technology-driven and sustainable development strategy.
• The NDMA is chaired by the Prime Minister of India and has a vice chairman with the status of Cabinet Minister and eight members with the status of Ministers of State.
• The NDMA Secretariat is headed by a Secretary and deals with mitigation, preparedness, plans, reconstruction, community awareness and financial and administrative aspects.

National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP)

• It was released in 2016, it is the first-ever national plan prepared in the country for disaster management.
• With National Disaster Management Plan (2016) India has aligned its National plan with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, to which India is a signatory.
• The objective of the plan is to make India disaster resilient, and achieve substantial disaster risk reduction. It aims to significantly decrease the losses of life, livelihoods, and assets in terms of economic, physical, social, cultural, and environmental. To maximize the ability to cope with disasters at all levels of administration as well as among communities.

State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA)

• At the State level, State Disaster Management Authorities are established under Disaster Management Act 2005.
• SDMA is chaired by the Chief Minister of the State and has not more than eight members who are appointed by the Chief Minister.
• The SDMA prepares the state disaster management plan and implements the National Disaster Management Plan.

District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA)

• Under Disaster Management Act 2005, every State government shall establish a DDMA for every district in the State.
• The DDM Authority shall consist of:
  • Chairperson - the Collector or District Magistrate or Deputy Commissioner act as Chairperson of DDMA.
  • Co-Chairperson - is the elected representative of the local authority. In the Tribal Areas, the Chief Executive Member of the district council of the autonomous district is the co-chairperson.
• There are not more than seven other members in DDMA.
• The Disaster Management Committee governed under District Magistrate will formulate village-level disaster management plans for concerned villages.
• The DDMA makes District Disaster Management Plan and implements the state Disaster Management Plan.

**No Planning commission today

Government Initiatives for Disaster Management

• India is a signatory to the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and is committed to achieving the priorities and objectives through systematic and institutional efforts.
• With multi-dimensional initiatives and expertise, India is taking a leading role in strengthening regional cooperation among South Asian countries for reducing disasters.
• India is one of the participating countries and works closely with the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). India has been working closely with many countries for the exchange of ideas and expertise in disaster management.
• National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) defines the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders including Central Ministries/ Departments, State Governments, UT Administrations, District Authorities and local self Governments.
• The primary responsibility of disaster management rests with the States. The Central Government conducts regular mock drills, community training and awareness programme to prepare the civilian populations for disasters.
• National Disaster Management Services (NDMS) was conceived by NDMA during 2015-16 for setting up of Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) Network connecting MHA, NDMA, NDRF etc. to provide the failsafe communication infrastructure and technical support for Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) operations across the country.
• NDMA has taken an initiative on Earthquake Disaster Risk Indexing (EDRI) for 50 important cities and 1 District in Seismic Zone IV & V areas.
  • This kind of indexing will be helpful in comparing the overall risk across a large number of cities or regions and also in the prioritization of cities to implement appropriate disaster mitigation measures.
• NDMA through Building Materials & Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC) has prepared Upgraded Earthquake Hazard Maps and Atlases for the country for better planning and policies.
• Leveraging the technology of geographic information system (GIS), NDMA has taken up a project for disaster risk management by establishing a GIS Server and creating of a database to integrate data obtained from various stakeholders to increase disaster preparedness, mitigation, damage assessment, response and relief management efforts.
• Under the National School Safety Programme (NSSP), 8600 schools (with 200 schools in 43 districts in 22 States/UTs falling seismic zones IV and V) have been selected for providing training on school safety and disaster preparedness.
• The Aapdamitra scheme of NDMA has provision for training 6000 community volunteers in disaster response in 30 most flood-prone districts (200 volunteers per district) in 25 States.
• The government has set up National Crisis Management Committee and Crisis Management Group.
• The state governments have set up state crisis management groups headed by chief secretaries, institutes of relief commissioners and state/district contingency plans.
• The disaster management policy of the government stresses forecasting and warning using advanced technologies, contingency agricultural planning to ensure availability of food grains, and preparedness and mitigation through specific programmes.
• Project on the deployment of Mobile Radiation Detection Systems (MRDS) to handle Radiological Hazards in Metros/Capital Cities/Big Cities in India to detect unclaimed radioactive materials/substances and save the public from their hazardous effects.
• Landslide Risk Mitigation Scheme (LRMS) envisages financial support for site-specific Landslide Mitigation Projects recommended by landslide-prone States, covering disaster prevention strategy, disaster mitigation and R&D in the monitoring of critical Landslides thereby leading to the development of Early Warning System and Capacity Building initiatives. The Scheme is under preparation.
• Core Group has been formed for the Preparation of Guidelines to avert Boat Tragedies in India.

Disaster Management in India: Success stories

• The Indian government's "zero casualties" policy for cyclones and the pinpoint accuracy of the India Meteorological Department's (IMD) early warning system have helped reduce the possibility of deaths from cyclone Fani in Odisha.
• India's policy of minimising fatalities from cyclones has been proven by past performances as in cyclone Phailin in 2013 when famously the casualty rate was kept to as low as 45 despite the intensity of the storm.
• In August 2010 during the flash floods due to cloudburst in Leh in Ladakh region by the Indian Army. The Army's immediate search, rescue, and relief operations and mass casualty management effectively and efficiently mitigated the impact of flash floods and restored normal life.
• Bihar suffers from floods almost every year during the monsoon season, predominantly due to the Ganges and its tributaries. The State has successfully scaled up disaster preparedness and mitigation efforts since 2011.

Issues in Disaster Management in India

• There are significant gaps in preparedness on various aspects of risk management, particularly for catastrophic disasters like major earthquakes and floods.
  • Though all of India’s states have departments of disaster management or relief and rehabilitation, they are still poorly prepared to lend support in times of disasters, according to the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
  • In a number of recent disasters, 2010 mudslides in Leh, the Sikkim earthquake in 2011 and the Uttarakhand floods of 2013, the level of preparedness was inadequate, leading to high levels of mortality and displacement of people.
• Facilities such as emergency operations centres, emergency communications, and search and rescue teams are being made available but these systems and facilities need to be strengthened.
• In India, Disaster management is yet to be seen as an essential part of good governance and integral to development planning.
• The preparedness at various levels is not people-oriented.
• India’s capacity to manage disaster risk is challenged by its size and huge population. The country is likely to have the greatest exposure of any nation in the world to extreme weather and natural disasters by 2030.
• The northeast region is most at risk from earthquakes and lacks seismically secure infrastructure and buildings. It is also vulnerable to landslides, floods and erosion.
• Flooding on the country’s plains is a regular occurrence, and although communities are resilient, the intensity of floods has reduced their capacity to adapt.
• The local adaptation efforts driven solely by communities are no longer sufficient and additional, scientifically planned adaptation is needed, which will require government support.
• The division of responsibilities under the Disaster Management Act is not very clear, resulting in its poor implementation. There also exists an overlap between the implementing agencies
• Intense public and media scrutiny after disasters automatically lead to a higher priority being given to response, rather than risk reduction.
• Furthermore, where risk-reduction activities are described, State Disaster Management Plans (SDMPs) do not institutionalise accountability mechanisms to ensure that departments follow these considerations in their own planning. As a result, risk-reduction activities are driven by schemes and external projects, rather than by guidelines in SDMPs.
• Because risk-reduction needs are locations specific, this gap is an opportunity for stronger, locally-led risk-reduction planning by Strengthening disaster risk management in India

Way Forward

• A clearer demarcation of national and state-level responsibilities is needed, especially regarding who is responsible for risk-reduction activities.
• It is vital for state disaster management authorities to focus on the continued capacity-building of district disaster management authorities and CSOs that are responsible for managing disaster risk. Capacity-building should support the planning and implementation of actions across the full disaster management cycle.
• There is a need to revise the SDMPs to include a much greater emphasis on risk reduction, rather than just preparedness and response.
• Existing rules and regulations that impede the inclusion of measures for risk reduction need to be amended.
• Build partnerships with and draw lessons from forerunner states such as Bihar and Gujarat on how to include risk reduction in plans more effectively.
• Accountability mechanisms need to be specified. This will ensure that departments follow disaster risk-reduction considerations in their own development planning.
• There is an urgent need to put the National Disaster Mitigation Fund and state disaster management funds into operation. States such as Bihar, which are leading in this regard, should share lessons on how to realise this at the state level.