JAWAHARLAL NEHRU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY HYDERABAD B.Tech III Year DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND PLANNING MANAGEMENT Previous Question Paper (August - 2022 - R18)

A disaster is a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society at any scale due to hazardous events interacting with conditions of exposure, vulnerability, and capacity, leading to widespread human, material, economic, or environmental losses that exceed the ability of the affected community to cope using its own resources.

Approaches to disaster preparedness include:

1. Risk Assessment Approach: Identifying and analyzing potential hazards and vulnerabilities to prioritize resources and interventions.
2. Community-Based Disaster Risk Management (CBDRM): Empowering local communities to identify their own risks and develop localized response strategies.
3. Structural and Non-Structural Approach: Combining physical infrastructure improvements (like flood walls) with policy-based actions (like land-use planning and public education).
4. Institutional Capacity Building: Strengthening the legal, financial, and organizational frameworks of government agencies to ensure effective coordination during emergencies.

Disaster mitigation involves structural and non-structural measures undertaken to limit the adverse impact of natural hazards. Key methods include:

1. Structural Mitigation: Implementing physical engineering solutions such as constructing earthquake-resistant buildings, flood embankments, cyclone shelters, and retrofitting existing infrastructure to withstand extreme forces.
2. Land-Use Planning: Regulating development in high-risk zones through zoning laws, setback requirements, and building codes to prevent human settlement in floodplains or landslide-prone areas.
3. Environmental Management: Protecting natural buffers like mangroves, wetlands, and forests that act as shock absorbers against storm surges, floods, and soil erosion.
4. Public Awareness and Education: Conducting training programs and drills to enhance individual and collective resilience, ensuring that populations understand how to react to early warning signals.
5. Insurance and Financial Risk Transfer: Utilizing insurance schemes and catastrophe bonds to distribute the economic burden of recovery, reducing the long-term financial impact on the state and individuals.