Damage done, where were the forces of national disaster management? A 235-strong force landed 48 hours after the breach and flooding on August 18. But warnings had been sounded around Independence Day.

In another emergency earlier, a national disaster management force took four hours to reach Kullu, Himachal Pradesh; the stampede in the Naina Devi temple had claimed 141 lives by then. Yes, India’s response to the 2004 tsunami or even the 2000 Bhuj earthquake was credible. But, in general, something’s very rotten in disaster management administration.

Rats have a major presence in the headquarters of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) at Centaur Hotel, Delhi. NDMA was set up in December 2005 and has the prime minister as its chairman. Its executive head is General (Retd) N.C. Vij, former Indian army chief. NDMA has 10 members, and Vij holds ex-officio rank of minister of state.

In terrorism-related incidents, NDMA doesn’t come in directly. These are handled by the disaster management cell under the home ministry which liaises with the concerned state. NDMA is supposed to have control of an eight-unit paramilitary force, called the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). Four units are trained to handle nuclear, biological and chemical disasters. These battalions, divided into 18 teams, have been raised via personnel from CISF, ITBP, BSF and CRPF. The eighth battalion is still being raised. The teams are stationed in Pune, Kolkata, Delhi, Vadodara, Mindli, Gauwhati, Chandigarh and Patna. This is the theory. But there are no dedicated airlift capabilities or equipment. That’s why the response team to Naina Devi, travelling via road, was at least four hours late.

... contd.