Strengthen the Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill, 2024
This paper is authored by Edmond Fernandes, honorary director, Edward & Cynthia Institute of Public Health, Mangaluru.
Parliament brought in the Disaster Management Act in the year 2005 (DM Act 2005). From 2005 to 2024, the country has seen sweeping progress, growth, changes and has also witnessed how weather events have become unpredictable. The Act emphasised a shift from a reactive to a proactive approach, focusing on preparedness, mitigation, and response. But in the run-up to the 2030 agenda, we are faced with cascading risks born out of disasters, climate extremes, pandemics, industrialisation and consequences for public health which remains a missing context in the Act and also now missing in the Amendment Bill 2024.
Over the years, the Act has inspired an evolution from governance to resilience which is an essential ingredient for recovery, restoration and rehabilitation. Risk informed planning, saving lives and livestock and adapting to the challenges of our times are absolutely critical given the growing man-nature interactions. No doubt the DM Act 2005 enabled the creation of a robust framework to factor in the lessons of history, manage disasters, integrate science.
However, the DM Amendment Bill 2024 which was recently introduced in Parliament to prepare for a resilient India by missing out a lot of critical layers that influence the outcome of our existence. The current landscape calls for new algorithms built on cross thematic links, technology and new lessons which requires a completely new line of thinking suitable to our times factoring in a systems approach.
Back in 2005, when the Act came into existence, the mobile phone journey was in infancy, Artificial Intelligence and big data were non-existent, social media was being experimented with and the focus of citizens never included extreme weather events which the climate crisis now presents. For India back then, the Act was comprehensive permitting clarity and reasonable discretion. Nineteen years have gone by in the process, simply put, we can say two decades now.
India, with its vast geographic and climatic diversity, is at the forefront of experiencing the profound impacts of the climate crisis which worsens public health and community development. The intersection of climate and health presents a complex array of challenges, including the exacerbation of existing health issues, the emergence of new health threats, and the strain on the health care infrastructure.
The Bill must graduate from a preparedness approach to a risk preventive approach which builds in plugging every possible gap not for the next few years, rather for the foreseeable future. The DM Amendment Bill 2024 further ought to build a risk informed planning algorithm to engage multi-dimensional stakeholders towards a focused risk mitigation aspiration.
The DM Amendment Bill 2024 should mainstream health systems safety and factor in all tiers of health care to be disaster prepared, disaster ready and disaster responsive. This would mean training doctors, nurses, paramedics, ward assistants in the craft of disaster risk adaptation. For example: In event of an electricity failure due to severe flooding, health systems must be able to recover and restore, the ICU, dialysis units, operation theatres which become critical layers of emergency care. Within large hospital campuses, identification of field hospitals must be decided to manage surge capacities and handle adverse events. Supply chains will naturally breakdown during disasters and these needs strengthening at the preparedness stage. The act of strengthening health infrastructure must build upon improving surveillance and reducing policy jargon, must address cross sectoral thematic risks and must also be factored into medical education.
The template during disasters is always human altruism in full measure and this is often led by NGOs as front-line warriors along with trained first responders associated with the government systems. Besides, there are some NGOs who have been engaged both at grassroot levels and also at policy levels, yet many district level officials struggle to engage them. When NGOs suggest progressive steps, the district administration must create a mechanism that can enable and encourage them further. Clarity on involvement and engagement is crucial to optimise the Act.
With temperatures rising, sea levels rising, intense heat waves rising, the threat to life and livestock will continue to increase. This will further trigger mortality rates and exacerbate chronic disease conditions particularly cardiovascular, respiratory and kidney ailments, besides mental health conditions.
Preparedness will mean involvement of practices around sustainable farming and crop diversification, addressing meat consumption, mitigation measures around food security and farm to plate needs. Technology can be leveraged to support disease data surveillance, climate patterns and in-patient flow. This however, will ought to translate and trickle down from national level policies to state and local level action.
This paper is authored by Edmond Fernandes, honorary director, Edward & Cynthia Institute of Public Health, Mangaluru.