Times of India, the

In what is considered another big diplomatic initiative, the Indian government has developed a road map for the establishment of a global coalition on disaster risk reduction and has already allocated preliminary funding for it. The coalition will support collaborative research, knowledge sharing as well as mutual technical assistance among coalition partners.

India's second sensors-based landslide warning system was installed in Sikkim, which contains one of the world's most landslide-prone regions. The new system can issue landslide warnings 24 hours in advance and will help disaster management authorities to take steps to mitigate and manage potential landslide threats in a proactive and effective manner.

New research has led to the development of three fault and seismicity maps for Goa. The maps are expected to help in the construction of quake-proof buildings by allowing engineers to predict the soil and seismic responses to earthquake loading.

Most states are less than half prepared to deal with floods because most approved funds have not yet been released, impeding states from developing necessary preparation measures. The total approved work for flood management was estimated to cost Rs 13,238 crore (approximately USD $13 million), but only RS 4,873 has been released.

Nearly 600 lives were lost in four other states besides Kerala due to overflowing rivers, with the home ministry putting the total figure at 993. Governing bodies have not impressed upon states the need to make compulsory provisions in their budget for DRR and resilience-building rather than spending scarce resources on relief and rehabilitation after calamities.

Goa's disaster management plan may appear formidable on paper, but recent incidents indicate a lack of quick response on the part of the authority to alert stakeholders or act expediently. Moreover, the government has not followed several risk reduction recommendations or implemented preparedness projects.

India's Ministry of Home Affairs carried out a risk assessment of 640 districts and has found that if the average annual loss of lives and property due to floods predicted by the National Disaster Management Authority is correct, in the next 10 years, more than 16,000 people will die in floods across the country and property worth over Rs 47,000 crore will be lost.

According to a World Bank report, rising temperatures and changing monsoon rainfall patterns from climate change could cost India 2.8 per cent of GDP and depress the living standards of nearly half the country's population by 2050. About 600 million people in India today live in locations that could either become moderate or severe hotspots of climate change by 2050.