The post disaster activities of the Department of Social Services, as mentioned by N. J. Pathirana (1998) shows that there is a chain of command in disaster relief activities in respect of natural disasters. The key information comes from the target groups or victims to Grama Niladaries, from Grama Niladaries to Divisional Secretariat and from Divisional Secretariat to District Secretariat. These information are then sent to the Central Government through the Department of Social Services and Ministry of Social Services.
The directives and funds are provided to Divisional Secretariat and District Secretariat through the Department of Social Services which receives the same from the Central Government through the Ministry of Social Services. Some International Organisations provide funds for disaster relief activities, it is received by the Department of Social Services. In this well-equipped network some information centres also work side by side which send key information to the Department of Social Services and receives directives, funds and assistance in lieu.
Disaster telecommunication which might be very much helpful for disaster management has to face some problems. Some of the problems are institutional such as different awareness, problem of inter-agency cooperation –coordination etc. Some regulatory problems like lack of legislation, lack of clear custom clearance, delay in approval process, heavy custom duties etc. are also there. On the other hand, some technical and financial problems also hinder the proper functioning of the telecommunication network in Sri Lanka.
Mapping for Disaster Management
Risk assessment in Nepal has not been undertaken on a systematic basis although there is some degree of general risk awareness among the people and the planners. The Remote Sensing Project as a part of Risk Assessment through hazard mapping in Nepal has mapped natural resources such as forests, water and land resources. Detailed land resources mapping has been carried out by the Land Resource Mapping Project. Aerial photography and satellite imageries have been employed for mapping purpose, but those maps do not incorporate mapping of natural hazards.
The Department of Mines and Geology has produced maps showing the geographical distribution of past earthquakes, but microseismic maps do not exist. The department has given priority to the study of landslide activities with the assistance of the Federal Institute of Geo-science.
The Natural Calamity Relief Act (1982) established the Central Disaster Relief Committee (CDRC) as the highest body responsible for disaster administration. It is mainly responsible for relief and disaster preparedness. Disaster-related studies are also undertaken by institutions like the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in Kathmandu. ICIMOD has studied glacial lake outbursts, landslides and risk engineering in the Himalayas. Organisations like the Royal Nepal Academy for Science and Technology (RONAST) and the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation (KMTNC) are also working in the field, focussing on environmental protection and conservation.
Nicholas Russell, Madhu Rahman Acharya and Shree Ram Pant proposed future actions required in the field of disaster management such as, preparation of hazard maps identifying hazard areas, zoning of risk areas, establishment of a single disaster management organisation, creating a permanent training institute for training of trainers and disaster managers, formulating standard codes of engineering practice and building codes, applying structural mitigation to major projects and infrastructure, undertaking by a Kathmandu Valley Earthquake Study encompassing vulnerability of infrastructure, developing communication (physical) network throughout the country, developing mechanism for establishing a regional database, sharing and using satellite and image processing facilities through the regional space laboratory, setting up the procedures and guidelines for disaster mitigation management.
References:
- Brammer, Hugh and Khan, Hamidur Rahman (1991), Bangladesh Country Study, Disaster Mitigation in Asia and Pacific, Asian Development Bank, Philippines.
- Jain, N. K. Floods in South Asian Context – A Critical Review.
- Islam, Md. Shamsul (1999), Disaster Management System in Bangladesh, Lecture notes, the 24th Disaster Management Course of Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC), Bangkok.
- Natural Disaster Reduction, South Asian Regional Report, presented to the World Conference on IDNDR, Yokohama, Japan, May 23-27, 1994.
- Ratnayake, Jagat, Interim Report of the Pilot Study on the Use of Telecommunications in Disasters and Emergency Situations in Sri Lanka.
- Russel, N., Acharya, M. R. and Pant, S. R. (1991), Nepal Country Study, Disaster Mitigation in Asia and the Pacific, Asian Development Bank, Philippines.
- Westen, C.J.V., Remote Sensing and Geographic
Information Systems for Geologic Hazard Mitigation, ITC Journal
1993-’94.