Disaster management in india: exploring the root causes & solutions

21/01/26

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Geographical and climatic exposure place India in the crosshairs of multiple hazards. The broad consequence: regardless of how good the response system is, exposure remains high. While there is no point in exploring how to prevent natural disasters, given that they are virtually unavoidable, what matters is a proactive stance in response, recovery, rehabilitation and resilience.

Here, India demonstrates significant progress, institutional innovation and the capacity to turn vulnerability into resilience. Disaster management in India has increasingly shifted from reactive chaos to proactive resilience. With mounting risks—climate-induced hazards, high population exposure, rapid urbanisation—the country has begun to chart a path not merely of damage control but of systematic risk reduction and capacity building.

Institutional architecture for disaster resilience

Disaster management in India has moved beyond ad hoc relief to structured preparedness, and that transition is bearing fruit. The dramatic shift begins with the institutional architecture and technical strengthening, which form the backbone of a resilient system.

One milestone: the country’s establishment of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and corresponding state and district bodies under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. This gave legal and organisational force to disaster management, for the first time making disaster resilience a formal part of national policy. India is now recognised in global forums as a model for preventive measures of natural disasters.

Building manpower and a volunteer network

Another major leap is the manpower and community volunteer backbone being built to respond to disasters. For instance, the Aapda Mitra scheme has created over one lakh community volunteers across 350 disaster-prone districts, registered on the national disaster resource network with experience in the preventive measures of natural calamities. Twenty per cent of these volunteers are women. This signals a shift in mindset: disaster management is not only the job of specialised agencies but also of empowered citizens.

The institutional shift also means good governance: clear roles, defined funding mechanisms, and alignment of central, state and local systems. The creation of the volunteer network, the integration of community actors, the formalising of early warning apps and the launch of hazard mapping programmes all show that India is no longer reacting in the moment but preparing in advance.

Tech-based forecasting

Early warning systems, technology, data and forecasting. Improved technology is a powerful tool. India’s meteorological services and disaster agencies now issue earlier and more detailed warnings for cyclones, heat waves, and floods. On the flood front, research is advancing on district-level flood severity indices and better datasets. Use of drones, wireless sensors, and remote sensing is growing. These efforts tighten the link between hazard detection and response. Capacity building, community-based preparedness and local-level action.

The connectivity between national meteorological agencies, state disaster authorities and citizens is tighter than ever. In flood management and hazard mapping, India is also deploying remote sensing, drones, wireless sensor networks, and advanced GIS. The state of Odisha again offers a striking example. The OSDMA placed local communities at the core, but it also used modern forecasting and evacuation systems to dramatically cut damages. In a nation with vast hazard exposure, scaled systems of early warning and rapid response are essential, and India is making serious headway.

Last mile capacity-building

Recognising that the last kilometre matters, many states and districts are investing in local capacity: village-level drills, disaster kits, and volunteers. Localising disaster management, from state to panchayat, is vital. Community participation ensures local knowledge is tapped and local action happens promptly. Urban resilience, infrastructure investment and risk-sensitive planning. Given the rapid urbanisation, cities are now focal points for resilience. Investments include expanding natural water bodies, improving drainage, and early warning in urban contexts.

Disaster-proofing infrastructure

On infrastructure, enforcing building codes, retrofitting old buildings, hazard hazard-proofing key structures are becoming more common. Financial instruments, risk financing and insurance solutions matter: risk pools, disaster funds, insurance for infrastructure, incentives for risk reduction. Innovative financial instruments, such as catastrophe bonds, micro insurance for farmers in hazard-prone zones, public public-private partnerships for resilient infrastructure, are gaining traction. States and districts now have statutory frameworks for disaster management, enabling clearer roles, responsibilities and resources. The NPDM emphasises community-based disaster management, capacity development, multi multi-sectoral synergy.

Conclusion

India now has numerous success stories where disaster management systems and community capacity translated into lives saved, damages contained, and systems strengthened.

Bal Raksha Bharat, an organisation with deep experience in NGO disaster relief, plays a vital role in building
disaster resilience and preventive measures of natural calamities, focusing especially on protecting children and their communities. The NGO has been active in disaster risk reduction and humanitarian response since 2010, providing immediate lifesaving support like food, shelter, water, sanitation, hygiene kits, and health services during emergencies such as floods, cyclones, and earthquakes. Their humanitarian disaster relief work goes beyond emergency relief to include recovery, reconstruction, and long-term resilience-building activities to help communities prepare better for future disasters using humanitarian disaster relief.

The NGO disaster relief organisation emphasises child-centric disaster management by creating Child-Friendly Spaces (CFS) that enable children affected by crises to continue learning and playing in safe environments. They collaborate with government bodies, such as the Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority, and expert institutions to integrate disaster education into schools and communities. This involves training children, teachers, and families on preparedness, evacuation drills, and risk identification, empowering children to respond effectively during emergencies.

Naveen Kumar

“Naveen is an SEO expert and digital marketing analyst at Bal Raksha Bharat with a passion for helping businesses grow online. With a data-driven approach, he specializes in boosting search rankings, driving traffic, and optimizing digital strategies. Follow for tips on SEO, content, and marketing trends."