Disaster Management in India · GPSC (Gujarat)

What the official syllabus says

General Studies-III (Main Examination, Paper VI), (B) Environmental Science and Disaster Management:
Disaster Management in India and Gujarat: Types of disasters, Disaster Management framework, Role of technology, Community participation and capacity building, lessons learnt from major disasters, Challenges and future strategies.

This page takes the national part of the line. Gujarat, which built its disaster management system after the 2001 earthquake, has its own page: Disaster Management in Gujarat.

Topics in detail

Concepts and types of disasters

Hazard, vulnerability, exposure, risk and capacity; risk = hazard x vulnerability
Natural disasters: geological (earthquake, tsunami, landslide), hydro-meteorological (cyclone, flood, drought, heat wave, cold wave, lightning, cloudburst), biological (epidemics, pest attacks)
Human-made disasters: industrial and chemical accidents, fires, building collapse, stampedes, nuclear and radiological emergencies
India's vulnerability profile: share of area prone to earthquakes, floods, cyclones and drought
The disaster management cycle: prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery, reconstruction

Disaster management framework

From relief to risk reduction: the shift after the 1999 Odisha super cyclone and the 2001 Gujarat earthquake
Disaster Management Act, 2005 (and its 2025 amendment): National, State and District Disaster Management Authorities
National Disaster Response Force; State Disaster Response Forces; civil defence and home guards
National Institute of Disaster Management; National Policy on Disaster Management (2009); National Disaster Management Plan (2016, revised 2019)
Financing: National and State Disaster Response Funds and Mitigation Funds; Finance Commission allocations
International frameworks: Hyogo Framework (2005), Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015 to 2030); Prime Minister's Ten-Point Agenda on DRR; Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure

Role of technology

Early warning: India Meteorological Department, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (tsunami warning, 2007), Central Water Commission flood forecasts
Satellites for monitoring cyclones, floods and fires; GIS hazard and vulnerability mapping
Common Alerting Protocol and cell broadcast warnings; Doppler weather radars
Seismic zoning and earthquake-resistant building codes (IS 1893); retrofitting
Drones, mobile apps and social media in search, rescue and relief

Community participation and capacity building

Community-based disaster management; village and ward disaster management plans
Aapda Mitra volunteers; NCC, NSS and youth volunteers
School safety and hospital safety programmes; mock drills
Training of officials; disaster management in school curricula
Role of panchayats, municipalities, NGOs and self-help groups

Lessons from major disasters

Bhopal gas tragedy (1984): chemical safety and the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991
Latur earthquake (1993) and the Gujarat earthquake (2001): building codes and owner-driven reconstruction
Indian Ocean tsunami (2004): tsunami warning system
Kedarnath floods (2013) and Kerala floods (2018): land use, dam management
Odisha cyclones (1999, Phailin 2013, Fani 2019): how early evacuation brought deaths down
COVID-19 pandemic: use of the Disaster Management Act for a health emergency

Challenges and future strategies

Urban flooding and unplanned urban growth; heat waves and heat action plans
Climate change raising the frequency of extreme events
Gaps in enforcement of building codes and land-use rules
Insurance and risk transfer; resilient infrastructure; mainstreaming risk reduction in development plans
Better last-mile warning and inclusion of vulnerable groups (elderly, disabled, women, children)

Overlaps

Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Volcanoes and Cyclones on this paper: the science behind the major hazards.
Prelims General Studies: national action plans on climate change and disaster management.