| Author | Madan, Aditi |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.DM-17-02 |
| Subject(s) | Floods--India--Delhi
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| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and Management, School of Environment, Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Dissertation; no. DM-17-02 |
| Abstract | Over the years flood related risks have increased across the globe making the poor and marginalised people more vulnerable to disasters. This has had a significant impact on the local institutions since continuing response activities hinder the success of initiatives being undertaken for disaster risk reduction. This research assesses the capacity of community at risk and institutions engaged in managing disasters in the context of preparedness and response. It also examines how the flood prone communities of Delhi are becoming more vulnerable to floods and consequent measures adopted by them to cope with floods. Primary data was collected through field survey of 171 flood prone households in Delhi and interviews and discussions with officials managing disasters in Delhi. The study follows inductive approach to understand the point of view of community and institutions working at the local level. Degree of vulnerability was measured by assigning equal weights technique for computing composite vulnerability index and data was analysed by using SPSS.
This study identifies that although institutions have undertaken measures for reducing the impact of floods, however institutions do not have enough capacity to manage disasters effectively due to several gaps. Firstly, the study points out that weak vertical linkages between district and local level institutions affect the ability of local authorities to secure funding, resources, equipment and permission from higher authorities, resulting in a response centric approach. Secondly, existence of multiplicity of institutions with overlapping roles and responsibilities results in confusion and accountability issues. Thirdly, the findings show that local level institutions have low level of risk perception with little awareness about their role in disaster situation, thereby suggesting the need for providing awareness programs even for officials involved in disaster risk reduction. Fourthly, the interface between local institutions and community shows that there is a need to promote community volunteerism to work towards achieving a common goal by guidance from institutions. Moreover, peoples’ denial to participate in awareness generation programs and trainings can be attributed to low socio-economic status and consequent low priority given to floods over daily needs. Thus, it suggests a strategy for capacity development specially for developing direct linkages between local institutions and community with community heads as the focal point to ensure that institutions work in a complementary manner for disaster risk reduction. |
| Year | 2017 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Dissertation; no. DM-17-02 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Development and Sustainability (DDS) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and Management (DM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Routray, Jayant Kumar; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Ahmad, Mokbul Morshed ;Shrestha, Sangam; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Asian Institute of Technology Fellowship; |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2017 |