Union Minister for Jal Shakti released Manual For Disaster Management Plan

Source: The post is based on the article “Union Minister for Jal Shakti released Manual For Disaster Management Plan”  published in PIB on 22nd July 2023. 

What is the News?

Union Minister for Jal Shakti has released the Manual for Disaster Management Plan (DMP)

About the Manual for Disaster Management Plan (DMP):

Developed by: Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation.

Aim: To ensure safety, uninterrupted supply and minimum loss of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) assets and services involving stakeholders at national, state, district and village level.

Based on: The plan is developed based on the Advisory issued by National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) which under Section 37 of Disaster Management Act, 2005 desires every Ministry/ Department to develop its own disaster plan to counter and be prepared for any emergency arising in future.

Significance: The plan aligns with the two-flagship programmes on WASH implemented by the Department namely the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) and Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin (SBM-G).

What are the key provisions of the Disaster Management Plan (DMP) developed by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation?

The plan explores the Disaster Management(DM) Cycle in four stages: 

Preparedness: Preparing WASH assets and services for disasters includes ensuring that the system is geared to respond swiftly and effectively to a disaster. The key elements of WASH Preparedness include the 5Ss: Standards, Supplies, Surge (additional personnel), Strategic alliances and Surveillance.

Response: Disaster response includes emergency services provided during or immediately after a disaster to save lives, reduce health impacts, ensure public safety and meet the basic needs. 

– In case of the WASH disaster response, this includes the immediate steps taken to restore water supply, correct water quality issues, and provide solutions for sanitation and hygiene.

Recovery and Reconstruction: Recovery and Reconstruction includes the restoration – and improvement where appropriate – of the facilities, livelihoods and living conditions of the affected communities. 

– In the context of WASH, this means the restoration of water, sanitation, and hygiene systems – not just to their pre-disaster levels, but to actually “build back beer” so that they are less vulnerable to future disasters of a similar nature.

Mitigation: Mitigation includes the steps taken to minimize the vulnerability of WASH infrastructure and services to future disasters.

Assessment: Three kinds of assessment need to be conducted

– Before the disaster: A Hazard-Vulnerability-Capacity mapping to guide the preparedness activities most needed.

– During Response: A Rapid Needs Assessment (RNA) which can be completed in a day and point out the immediate needs of the affected population.

– During Recovery & Reconstruction: A detailed Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) which highlights the long-term needs of the community and helps the administration “build back better” the damaged infrastructure and update the service delivery mechanisms to mitigate against future disasters.