An Assessment Framework for Disaster Preparedness at sub national levels in the Indian context

Abstract

Disaster proneness of India demands continuous monitoring of disaster preparedness. Assessment of disaster preparedness is a multifaceted task in India due to the diverse geo climatic conditions and exposure to a range of disasters. In the federal system of governance in India, policy formulation for Disaster Management (DM) is a central subject and execution; a state subject, with a lead role assigned to District administration. The local, district and state administration deal with disasters on a regular basis; which demands timely implementation and continuous monitoring of preparedness and response initiatives. Besides, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015- 2030 identified the enhancement of disaster preparedness as a priority for effective response and to Build Back Better . As disasters demand quick decisions to be made, a ready-to-reckon tool to assess disaster preparedness at sub-national levels, with easily available and regularly maintained datasets is deemed inevitable. However, no well-accepted methods are available to measure and monitor the levels of progress on DM aspects in India. Literature states that not many empirical studies have been conducted on the determinants of disaster preparedness in developing countries, either. This research addresses the absence of a framework to assess disaster preparedness and proposes to develop a methodological framework and a metric to appraise the levels of preparedness at sub-national levels in India. Disaster Preparedness (DP) includes multiple processes ranging from planning, capacity development and hazard monitoring; to emergency response and early recovery. The formulation of metrics for measuring DP calls for identification of measurable attributes which help assess all the dimensions of DP. As indicator-based assessments capture and measure multi-dimensional aspects better, an indicator framework was xvi developed to assess the multiple aspects of DP. Integrating stake-holder participation, statistical methods as well as probabilisti