Question – Classify disasters. What types of disasters is India most affected by? – 21 July 2021
Answer – Classify Disasters
Disaster means any accident, incident, calamity or grave occurrence in any area caused by natural or man-made causes, or by negligence resulting in substantial loss of life or human suffering or damage, and destruction of property, or damage, or degradation of the environment, and the event is of such a nature and magnitude as to be beyond the capacity of the community of the affected area to recover.
The damage caused by various disasters can be avoided to a great extent by an efficient disaster management system. At least the casualties can be minimized or zero. The geographical and environmental condition of the Indian subcontinent is such that the possibility of occurrence of various types of disasters here cannot be ruled out. as-
- About 60 percent of the Indian subcontinent’s land area falls under the earthquake prone zone.
- India comes under the influence of about 10% of the world’s cyclones.
- About 68% of India’s cultivable land is highly vulnerable to drought.
- Human interventions have increased the incidence of landslides in the Himalayan region and the Western Ghats.
- A huge area is affected by floods.
- Frequent incidents of fire in dry deciduous and deciduous forests.
Due to the needs of the growing population in India, due to increased human intervention in the environment, the frequency of various types of disasters has increased. Therefore, the need of the hour is the activation of an efficient, effective, and robust disaster management system.
Disasters in India are divided into the following categories-
- Disasters related to water and climate: cyclones, tornadoes and storms, hailstorms, cloudbursts, heat wave and cold wave, avalanche, drought, ocean erosion, cloud-roar and lightning.
- Land related calamities: landslides, earthquakes, dam break, mine fire.
- Accidental disasters: forest fires, city fires, mines flooding, oil spills, major building collapses, simultaneous multiple bombings, lightning strikes, air, road and rail accidents.
- Biological calamities: epidemics, insect attacks, animal epidemics, food poisoning.
- Chemical, industrial and nuclear related disasters, chemical gas leaks, atomic bomb fall.
It is clear, disaster is such an event that has an impact on a large area and preventing them completely is not an easy task. But it can certainly be managed. Since all the countries in the world are affected by some kind of disaster, so it is necessary that all the countries of the world make efforts in this direction together. International coordination will be required to prevent disaster. Apart from this, by establishing an ecological balance between carbon emissions and the natural absorption capacity of the earth, good results can certainly be achieved in this direction.
