Lok Sabha Question No. 2470 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-12-10
Subject: Disaster Preparedness and Climate Resilience
Ministry: HOME AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Kodikunnil Suresh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2470

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 10 TH  DECEMBER, 2024/ AGRAHAYANA 19, 1946 (SAKA)

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE

2470. SHRI KODIKUNNIL SURESH:

Will the Minister of HOME AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) the Government's comprehensive plan to enhance disaster preparedness and resilience  in  the  country,  particularly  in  regions  highly  vulnerable  to extreme weather events such as cyclones, floods, and landslides;

(b)  whether the Government has a specific strategy to provide additional resources  and  support  to  Kerala-Wayanad,  which  frequently  face  natural disasters, especially floods and landslides;

(c) if  so,  the  details  of  funds  allocated  for  disaster  relief,  disaster management and climate resilience projects during the last three years for Kerala, along with the utilization of such funds in the aforementioned State;

(d)  the  details  of  funds  that  are  allocated  specifically  for  Wayanad  in connection  with  the recent  land slide in  Punjirimattom,  Mundakkai, Chooralmala, and Vellarimala villages in Meppadi panchayat, Vythiri taluk in Wayanad district, Kerala; and

(e)  whether  the  Government  has  initiated  any  new  programmes  to strengthen local disaster management capacity and early warning systems in these high-risk areas and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS (SHRI NITYANAND RAI)

(a) & (e): The  Disaster  Management Act,  2005  provides  for  the legal and  institutional  framework  for  the  effective  management  of  disasters.

National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has prepared the National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) in 2016 the updated and revised it in 2019.    NDMP  provides  a  framework  and  direction  to  the  government agencies for all phases of disaster management cycle.  It is a strategic tool in further strengthening disaster resilient development in the country.

NDMP incorporates national commitments in the domain of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) associated with the three major post-2015 Global Frameworks  namely,  Sendai  Framework  for  Disaster  Risk  Reduction (SFDRR), Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and Prime Minister's 10-point Agenda.

NDMP brings together all sectors, ministries and departments at Central and State  level  as  well  as  district level  functionaries  and  defines  their respective roles and responsibilities in disaster risk reduction. It recognizes  the  need  to  minimize,  if  not  eliminate,  any  ambiguity  in  the responsibility framework.

Further, the National Policy on Disaster Management (NPDM) has also been prepared and approved in 2009 in tune with and in pursuance of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 with a vision to build a safe and disaster resilient India   by   developing   a   holistic,   proactive,  multi-disaster  oriented  and

technology  driven  strategy  through  a  culture  of  prevention,  mitigation, preparedness and response.

Central Government's initiatives to strengthen local disaster management capacity and early warning systems in high-risk areas include the following:-

-  Government  of  India  has  also  approved  Rs.  1000  Crore  National Landslide Risk Mitigation Programme which includes implementation of landslide risk mitigation activities / projects in 15States including the State of Kerala.  The State Government may furnish their projects as per the approved programme for mitigation activities for landslide affected areas in Kerala including Wayanad.
-  Aapda Mitra Scheme, has been implemented and 1,00,000 community volunteers have been trained in disaster rescue in 350 multi-hazards disaster  prone  districts,  covering  all  States/UTs.    Each  volunteer  Aapda Mitra or Aapda Sakhi - is given two-week intense training in disaster response (relevant to their area of operations), equipped with an Emergency Responder Kit (ERK), and provided an insurance cover for  five  years.  In  addition,  each  district  is  provided  an  Emergency Essential Resource Reserve (EERR) for the use of Aapda Mitra during disasters.

-  'Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) based Integrated Alert System' has been implemented for dissemination of geo targeted early warnings/alerts related to disasters to the citizens of India for all 36 States/UTs using various disseminating medium like SMS, TV, Radio, Indian Railways, Costal Sirens, Cell broadcast, Internet (RSS feed & Browser  Notification),  Satellite  Receiver  of  GAGAN  &  NavIC  etc., through integration of all Alerting Agencies.  The alerts are sent to geo targeted areas in regional languages. There is a web-based dashboard to disaster managers for approving/editing alerts and choosing media for dissemination. The system has been used successfully in recent disasters. More than 4300 crore alerts have been transmitted so far using this system.
-  In order to implement the vision of Prime Minister for 'Single Distress Number for all emergencies across the country' the Project 'Extension of ERSS' with existing single number '112', has been implemented, which also caters for emergency call related to disasters.  This project has  been  designed  to  leverage  technology  for  a  swift  response  to distress  calls  related  to  disaster  thus  mitigating  loss  of  life  and property.

-  Under  the  National  Cyclone  Risk  Mitigation  Project  (NCRMP),  Early Warning  Systems  have  been  installed  in  the  Coastal  States,  which have proved to be of great help in alert dissemination to the coastal community during recent cyclone.
-  Under  NCRMP,  24,007  Government  officials  from  various  priority sectors  viz.,  Health,  Education,  Panchayat  Raj  Institutions,  Urban Local Bodies, and Rural Development have been trained through 925 Capacity Building Trainings. 68,988 community representatives have been trained on various disaster response skills viz., First Aid, Search &  Rescue,  and  Shelter  Management  through  3,421  Shelter  Level Trainings.
-  NDMA has developed a web-based Dynamic Composite Risk Atlas and Decision  Support  System  (Web-DCRA  &  DSS  tool)  for  cyclone  risk mitigation  and  response  planning.    The  tool  has  been  successfully used in recent cyclones such as Biparjoy (June, 2023) and Cyclone Michaung (December, 2023)
-  Indian Universities and Institutions Network (IUINDRR-NIDM) has been established, under the aegis of National Institute of Disaster Management  (NIDM),  to  highlight  the role of education, research and

training in disaster resilience and to develop model curricula for DRR with its integration at various levels. The IUINDRR provides a platform for interface between academia and policy. It also provides a platform for collaborative development of knowledge products on disaster risk reduction.    So  far,  more  than  300  Universities  and  Institutes  have joined the network.

-  NDRF regularly  conducts  Mock  Exercises  in  all  36  States  /  UTs  on community  disaster  awareness  in  Floods,  Cyclones,  Earthquake, Landslide & Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) in vulnerable areas with various stakeholders of Disaster Management / Response.  NDRF also conducts School Safety Programme (SSP) to impart training on disaster response to children in vulnerable schools in all 36 States/UTs of India.
-  NDMA has issued thirty-eight (38) guidelines for management of hazard specific disaster on various thematic and cross-cutting issues.

(b) to (d): The  primary  responsibility  for  disaster  management  including disbursal of relief  assistance  on  ground  level  rests  with  the  State Governments  concerned.    The  Central  Government  provides  requisite logistics  and  financial  assistance  to  support  the  efforts  of  the  State Governments.

The State Governments provide financial relief to the affected people in the event of 12 notified natural disasters, which includes floods and landslides, from  the  State  Disaster  Response  Fund  (SDRF),  already  placed  at  its disposal in accordance with approved items and norms of Government of India.

However, in the event of disaster of a 'severe nature', additional financial assistance is extended from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), as per laid down procedure, which includes an assessment based on the visit of an Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT).  The financial assistance provided under SDRF and NDRF is by way of relief and not for compensation. The allocation and releases from SDRF/ NDRF to the State of Kerala during last three years i.e. 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24 is as under: -

(Rs. in Crore)

| Year    | Allocation under SDRF   | Allocation under SDRF   | Allocation under SDRF   | Releases of central share under SDRF   |
|---------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|----------------------------------------|
|         | Central Share           | State Share             | Total                   |                                        |
| 2021-22 | 251.20                  | 84.00                   | 335.20                  | 251.20                                 |
| 2022-23 | 264.00                  | 88.00                   | 352.00                  | 264.00                                 |
| 2023-24 | 277.60                  | 92.00                   | 369.60                  | 277.60                                 |

An amount of Rs. 388.00 crore (Rs. 291.20 crore Central Share + Rs. 96.80 crore State share) has been allocated to State Government of Kerala for financial  year  2024-25  in  SDRF.  The  1 st   instalment of Rs. 145.60 crore of

Central share was released on 31.07.2024. The 2 nd instalment of Rs. 145.60 crore of Central Share was also released on 01.10.2024 in advance to the State.  In addition, the Accountant General, Kerala reported balance of Rs. 394.99 crore in its SDRF account as on 1 st  April, 2024. Thus sufficient fund of Rs. 782.99 crore is available in the SDRF account at the state for the relief operations.

Further, in the wake of landslide and flash flood in Wayanad, Kerala, an IMCT was  constituted  on  02.08.2024  to  assess  the  damage  by  the  Central Government without waiting for a memorandum from the State Government of Kerala.  The IMCT visited the affected areas of the State from 8 th  August to 10 th  August, 2024.  The instant calamity at Wayanad has been adjudged to be of 'severe nature' by the IMCT.  The State Government submitted its memorandum on 19.08.2024 seeking an additional assistance of Rs. 214.68 crore under NDRF including Rs. 36 Crore estimated for removal of debris, which was yet to be incurred, for providing temporary relief assistance of immediate  nature.  Based  on  the  report  of  the  IMCT,  the  High  Level Committee (HLC) in its meeting held on 16.11.2024, approved an amount of Rs. 153.47 crore (subject to the adjustment of 50% of balance available in the  SDRF  account),  assistance  for  the  air  bills  of  Indian  Air  Force  (IAF) helicopters for rescue and relief, as per actual, and actual expenditure for the clearance of debris.

Further, the State has carried out Post-Disaster-Needs-Assessment (PDNA), estimating  a  total  requirement  of  Rs.  2219.033  crores  for  Recovery  & Reconstruction. The report of the State Government has been provided to the  Central  Government  on  13.11.2024.    The  Central  Government  has constituted  a  Multi-Sectoral  Team  to  examine  PDNA  report  and  further action is taken as per the established procedure under the guidelines on constitution  and  administration  of  Recovery  &  Reconstruction  Funding Window  which are available on Ministry of Home  Affairs website www.ndmindia.mha.gov.in

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