UPSC Mains 2016 GS3 Q16 — Disaster Mitigation
With reference to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) guidelines, discuss the measures to be adopted to mitigate the impact of the recent incidents of cloudbursts in many places of Uttarakhand. (Answer in not more than 200 words)
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- discuss
- Scope keywords
- National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) guidelinesmitigate the impactrecent incidents of cloudburstsUttarakhand
- Implicit sub-parts
- Briefly define the phenomenon of cloudbursts and their vulnerability specific to Uttarakhand's topography.
- Categorize NDMA guidelines into Structural (infrastructure) and Non-structural (policy/planning) mitigation measures.
- Address the 'recent incidents' context by suggesting technology-driven early warning systems and land-use zoning.
- Propose community-based disaster management as a specific pillar of the NDMA framework.
- Common pitfalls
- Writing a general essay on climate change without citing specific NDMA guidelines/frameworks.
- Failing to mention the 'Landslide Atlas' or 'Flash Flood Guidance System' which are core to modern NDMA strategies.
- Focusing only on relief and rescue instead of 'mitigation' as explicitly asked by the prompt.
- Ignoring the specific geography of Uttarakhand (e.g., glacial lakes, steep slopes, river encroachment) in the mitigation strategy.
- Dimensions required
- Technological (Early Warning Systems, Doppler Radars)Regulatory (Building codes, Himalayan Land Use Zoning)Ecological (Afforestation, Catchment area treatment)Institutional (SDMA-DDMA coordination, NDRF/SDRF deployment)Societal (Community capacity building, traditional knowledge)
- Marks allocation hint
Spend 30 words on the context of cloudbursts in Uttarakhand. Devote the bulk (130 words) to structural and non-structural mitigation measures strictly mapped to NDMA guidelines. Conclude with 40 words on the shift from reactive relief to proactive resilience-building.
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