Effective disaster management saved thousands of precious lives in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. This must be the trend
In the last one week we have had two disasters — the cyclone in Odisha and the temple stampede in Madhya Pradesh. One was natural while the other was man-made. Why was tackling Phailin a success and the temple tragedy, that left more than 100 people dead, a disasterIJ How did Odisha get it right while Madhya Pradesh did notIJ In fact, both Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan have been leading stable Governments for about a decade and are perceived as able Chief Ministers.
One cannot feel elated by just one example of Phailin, although we are learning to cope with nature’s fury. India has had several natural disasters in the past. At the beginning of this monsoon session, the Uttarakhand tragedy caused widespread damage as the administration was unprepared. The coordination was prompt and organised in case of Phailin. Since 2009, all major cyclones to hit the east coast — Aila, Thane, and Nilam — have been predicted well in advance, minimising the loss to human life. The Indian Meteorological Department and other scientific agencies had been equipped with advance warning equipment.
Odisha proved that what is required to face natural calamities is perfect coordination between the Centre, State and several Government agencies, and trained personnel, apart from political will. About eight lakh people were evacuated to safer places. Odisha has developed a system of communicating cyclone warnings — through mass media, public address systems and religious places.
The Congress-led UPA at the Centre is of course trying to take credit for the success in tackling the cyclone, while blaming Mr Chouhan for the temple tragedy. The Centre certainly went all out to tackle the Odisha cyclone and almost all the departments were prompt in extending services to Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. The restoration of train services, power transmission, communications and essential services were prompt. The Army, Navy and Air Force have been pressed into service.
This brings us to the greater moral of the story: The stampede in a Madhya Pradesh temple tells us that we should not celebrate success too soon. One success cannot be read as turnaround in Indian governance, and there is need to build on the success of Phailin story and further improve the system. While this should be treated as a benchmark, there is also need to set high standards for what the Government can and should do. The science has advanced so much that more investment should be made in disaster management, perhaps, taking a leaf from countries like Japan.
According to a recent review, while all States are supposed to have a disaster management plan ready to meet any eventuality, some States including Madhya Pradesh were still not ready with one.
Although the Government has woken up after the Tsunami in 2004, skills are still inadequate to handle man-made calamities. Sunday’s stampede near Ratangarh temple in Madhya Pradesh was an avoidable tragedy. The district administration never anticipated such a disaster and, therefore, was unprepared. The judicial inquiry may bring out the truth about various conflicting claims.
The National Disaster Management Authority has recently released a study on crowd management. This includes a snake like approach, getting more administrative reinforcement for regulating the crowds and formulating plans for the dignitaries. It also suggested that the emergency exits should not be blocked and VIP entry should be refused if it hindered the safety concerns. Devotees throng temples on auspicious occasions and there should be a system to ensure orderly darshan for all. These should be enforced by all States in crowded places.
A committed administration can deliver as the Patnaik Government has proved. The Odisha Chief Secretary is said to have sent out a circular holding the district administration accountable for rescue and relief work. This has worked well. The cooperation between the Central and the State authorities certainly proved beneficial for facing the cyclone.
What is needed is political will. Above all, even in Odisha, although relief operations had been a success, there is still the challenge of rehabilitation. Hopefully, the State Governments would tackle this with equal fervour.