Learning from the Gujarat quake
It is more than two years since the terrible earthquake struck Gujarat. In this period the catastrophe-struck areas have witnessed rehabilitation work on an enormous scale. The Disaster Mitigation Institute, an Ahmedabad-based community action hub, evaluated the relief measures undertaken by the government and humanitarian agencies in the aftermath of the calamity. It concluded that while the tragedy has taught important lessons, many critical ones still remain to be learnt.
Gujarat has immensely bolstered its mechanism to face up to a crisis like this by purchasing and pooling tools, equipments and by developing a well-connected system to conduct rescue and search operations. The state can now also avoid the common mismanagement that hampers relief operations in India. It has built up, in a short span of time, an institutional mechanism in the form of Gujarat State Disaster Management Association that can reach out to people in the face of any natural calamity without slowing down government functions. The importance of institutional capacities especially for management of finance and administrative coordination is realised in government relief administration agencies.
Transparent reconstruction The rebuilding and reconstruction processes in Gujarat have taught some remarkable lessons in vulnerability reduction. These might prove useful in case of natural calamities elsewhere. The Gujarat experience has taught that building shelters with lesser vulnerability to earthquakes should take into account also the specific needs of the victims and not remain just a top-down humanitarian endeavour. The United Nations Development Programme aided setus or information bridges run by Abhiyan