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International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 16

Volume 3, No. 1, January 2014

The Role of Information System in Disaster Management


M. C. Shibin Tad, Research Scholar, School of Management Studies, Noorul Islam University, India.
Dr. K. A. Janardhanan, Professor, School of Management Studies, Noorul Islam University, India.

ABSTRACT Disaster is a catastrophic disruption of life in a society


caused by nature or a man made situation. Disasters can be
Disaster is a catastrophic disruption of life in a society of the type where the onset is slow like famines or of the
now-a-days disaster becomes a common phenomenon due type where the onset is rapid, like earthquake, floods etc.
to man-made or natural hazards. Information system plays Disaster management encompasses activities directed
a pivotal role for effective disaster management. This towards meeting such situations. India is prone to various
paper made an attempt to highlights the needs for effective types of disasters due to its geological dimensions. A
information system for effective disaster management. It disaster is a outcome from the combination of hazard,
also pinpointed various information sources for handling susceptibility and insufficient capacity or measures to
disaster situation and databases for effective disaster reduce the potential possibility of risk. A disaster happens
management in Indian situation. when a hazard influences on the vulnerable population and
causes disruption, damage and casualties.
Keywords:
Disaster, Natural Hazards, Information, sources, Disaster 3. DISASTER AND GEOGRAPHIC
Management NATURE OF INDIA

I. INTRODUCTION Floods, droughts, cyclones ,earthquakes ,landslides,


tsunamis, attack by terrorist, fire and land degradation and
Disaster is an adverse or unfortunate event, or grave the effects of their pollution are affecting the world on a
misfortune, or just an occurrence that causes great loss of scale witch mankind has never witnessed before. Because
life, injury or damage and loss of property. Disaster is a of the unique geo-climate conditions and topographical
sudden misfortune or catastrophe or ruinous happening landscape of India, It is a country which is prone to more
that causes widespread destruction and distress. Further, all types of natural and manmade disaster than only other
disaster is defined as a crisis situation causing wide spread countries in the world. India is a typical subcontinent the
damage which far exceeds our ability to recover. Thus by area vice it occupied 2.4 % but 8% of the much living
definition, there cannot be a perfect ideal system that things are here.45500 types of plants and 91000 verities of
prevents destruction, because then it would not be a animals and thousands types of water –living things are
disaster. It has to disable our ability to recover; only then it depending the India, and also the other side it has been
can be termed as ‘disaster’. Disasters are not totally traditionally vulnerable to natural disaster on account of its
discrete events. The possibility of their occurrence can be geo climatic condition. Floods, droughts, cyclones,
reasonably predicted with the aid of technological and earthquakes, landslides, have been recurrent phenomena.
scientific equipment. It has been established that there is a About 60% of the landmass is prone to earthquake of
definite pattern in their occurrences and hence we can various intensities. Over 40 million hectors is prone to
some extent reduce the impact of damage. susceptible to droughts. In the decades of 1990-2012about
30 million people are affected by disasters every year.

2. DISASTER India is a large country and prone to a number of natural


hazards. In India mainly the north is prone to earthquake,
The term disaster owes its origin to the French word the southern and eastern costs to tsunamis. Cyclone baffler
“Desastre” which is a combination of two words ‘des’ the east coast, Floods occur mainly in Bihar, Assam and
meaning bad and ‘aster’ meaning star. Thus the term refers West Bengal. Droughts occur in Rajasthan, Haryana and
to ‘Bad or Evil star’. As per the report of high powered the Punjab. Landslides occur in mountainous area and
committee (HPC) on Disaster Management (HPC Report, North Eastern region .Fire can occur anywhere like more
2001) the disaster is an event of natural or manmade density places, apartments, office complexes industries
causes that leads to sudden disruption of normalcy within etc, especially forest fire is a important issue in the sunny
society, causing injury to life and property, to such an seasons as well as thunder lightning are the regular
extent that usual social and economic mechanisms incidents.
available are inadequate to restore normalcy.

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International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 17
Volume 3, No. 1, January 2014

4. ROLE OF INFORMATION elaborate one which attempts to do more than is really


necessary, with the attendant risks of it being costly, time
“Information is what information does”. Utility of any consuming to maintain, the data being out of date and the
information is its timely dissemination to the right persons. system itself being inappropriate to the real needs of its
Information plays an important role in empowering the users.
personnel involved in disaster management at various
levels. Relevant proactive information can go a long way B. Investigating the existing databases and integrating
in handling such situations and in preparing to meet the with them
same. Information need takes different dimensions in Often the information needs of disaster managers overlap
different situations. The personnel who need information those of other organizations and the data may, therefore,
on disaster management range from health sector already be stored elsewhere. Disaster managers should
managers, epidemiologists, primary health care physicians, resist the temptation to establish their own all embracing
nurses, sanitary engineers, academicians, researchers, database. At the national level there are almost certainly
disaster mitigation personnel, social service organisations, existing databases for a wide variety of purposes. An
to the common man. example of a disaster-related international database is a
commercially developed one on hazardous substances.
5. INFORMATION NEEDS IN DISASTER UNEP is planning to introduce a similar one for
environmental matters.
MANAGEMENT
The information needs of disaster managers fall into three 6. DISASTER MANAGEMENT
distinct, but closely related, categories of activities viz: INFORMATION SYSTEM
• Pre-disaster activities: risk assessment, prevention,
mitigation and preparedness; analysis and research Effective information management for disasters is a vital
(to improve the existing knowledge base). component of international disaster reaction and relief. It is
• During disaster : emergency response activities, and based on the premise that accurate and timely information
• Post-disaster activities: rehabilitation, response and is available before (early warning and monitoring), during
reconstruction. and after disasters. Information management involves
beneficiary involvement, coordination, delivery of relief
Accordingly, there are three categories of disaster-related assistance, monitoring and evaluation, marketing and
data: external relations.
Information management saves lives through early
• Pre-disaster baseline data about the country and
warning and it reduces suffering in the wake of disasters,
risks;
by providing tracing services, concise information on
• During disaster – handling of emergency responses
assistance packages, or clearly indicating where and when
and
shelter will be provided. It also promotes better media
• Post-disaster real-time data about the impact of a coverage of the world’s neglected disasters so that global
disaster and the resources available to combat it assistance might be more equitably allocated
The ability of leaders and administrators to make sound
disaster management decisions –is to analyze risks and 7. COMPONENTS OF A NATIONAL
decide upon appropriate counter-measures - can be greatly DISASTER MANAGEMENT
enhanced by the cross-sectoral integration of information. INFORMATION SYSTEM
For example, to understand the full short and long-term
implications of floods and to plan accordingly requires the Key components of a Disaster Management Information
analysis of combined data on topography, hydrology, System would be a database of
meteorology, soil characteristics, vegetation, settlements, a. Hazard Assessment Mapping
infrastructure, population, transportation, socio-economic b. Vulnerability Assessment
and material resources. This information comes from many c. Demographic Distribution
different sources and at present it is difficult in most d. Infrastructure, Lifelines and Critical Facilities
countries to bring it all together. e. Logistics and Transportation Routes
f. Human and Material Response Resources
There are two essential preliminaries to establishing a g. Communication Facilities
disaster management information system:
The usage of Disaster Management Information Systems
A. Defining the purpose of the system (DMIS) would be in 3 contexts
Failure to have a very clear idea of the purpose of the • Preparedness planning
system is likely to lead to the creation of an unnecessarily • Mitigation

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International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 18
Volume 3, No. 1, January 2014

• Response & recovery resources should be harnessed and packaged to suit the
needs of professionals working in various areas of disaster
The hazard and vulnerability assessments and mapping mitigation. The information is generated in various formats
components of a DMIS are the cornerstone of and it is necessary to mobilize them systematically to
preparedness planning as well as planning and fulfill the information requirements.
implementation of a mitigation program. All data is of
critical use in the preparedness plan as well as in the actual Categories of Resources
response operations. It must be recognized that the • Textbooks / Monographs
development of these databases in country has to be built • Journal articles
bottom up from the lowest administrative unit in country • Educational aids/training materials
i.e. the sub-district and district corresponding to the level • Public interest promotional literature
of the disaster preparedness plan. The district databases • Audio-visual resources
would feed into the state/provincial database and then into • Research / Survey reports
the national database.
10. EXISTING INFORMATION/
8. NEED FOR EFFECTIVE DISASTER EDUCATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE IN
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM INDIA
A very important step in effective management of disasters
A. Select Institutes of Disaster Management
is bridging the information gap. Libraries play a very
1. National Disaster Management Institute, New
important role in achieving this by harnessing and
Delhi, an apex institute set up by the Indian Institute
disseminating information resources. Developing an
of Public Administration and the Center for Disaster
efficient disaster management information system is an
Management
important stage in planning for disaster preparedness.
2. Disaster Management Institute, Bhopal, setup after
the Bhopal tragedy, 1984
A. Proactive information
3. National Information Center of Earthquake
Following the dictum prevention is better than cure; people
Engineering (NICEE) - IIT Kanpur, with an
should be empowered with information at the pre-disaster
exclusive focus on information related to
level for disaster preparedness.
earthquakes
• Identification of zones which are prone to
4. All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI),
earthquakes, floods etc., within which safer location
Ahmedabad
for hospitals etc.
• awareness regarding use of non- eco friendly B. Resources / Databases
materials (use of plastic bags in Mumbai) 1. The database of book collection of the NICEE,
• need for preservation of ecological balance Kanpur is available at
(prevention of the destruction of mangrove http://nicee.org/NICEE/acquisitions. html
stretches) 2. A web resource giving detailed information on 10
disaster prone states of India,
B. During a disaster http://managedisasters.org/
• messaging 3. A web portal on disaster management
• warning / alerting systems http://www.sristi.org/dmis.html,
• help lines to contact 4. A knowledge network on disaster management
• alert regarding health hazards created by the Ministry of Home Affairs,
Government of India. Can be accessed only by
C. Post Disaster users authorized by Government of India,
• information on various rehabilitation activities http://www.idrn.gov.in/
• documentation of the details of the incident and the
mitigation undertaken C. Database of Print literature
• drawing future plans for prevention of disaster 1. Bibliographic database of books/monographs
2. Digitized full text databases of published documents
9. KINDS OF RESOURCES wherever possible with due opyright compliance
3. Articles from scholarly journals
At each of the three stages mentioned above, the 4. Newspaper clippings
concerned personnel need different levels of information. 5. Promotional /Awareness material
It is necessary to make the relevant information resources 6. Research / Survey reports
accessible to them at the appropriate time. Information 7. Government reports

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International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 19
Volume 3, No. 1, January 2014

8. Case studies tools in the social media toolbox offer both opportunities
9. Training materials and challenges for local government. Social media include
10. Grey literature (unpublished research literature to be social networking applications such as Facebook™ and
obtained through coordination with research Google+™, micro blogging services such as Twitter™,
organizations, NGOs) blogs, wikis, and media sharing sites such as YouTube™
and Flickr™. Social media is considered to be a part of the
D. Audio visual materials Web 2.0 movement, which is characterized by user-
1. Cartographic resources (showing locations of generated content, online identity creation, and relational
different types of hazard zones, safe zones) networking. Social media has a particularly appealing
2. Video tapes (visuals of the incidents, rescue potential for e-participation. According to a research
operations; videos for training) conducted by Sensis2 in 2012 - Facebook dominates as the
3. CD ROMs most used social networking site, being used by 97% of
4. Database of emergency services (fire stations, social networking participants or 6 out of 10 Internet users.
ambulance services) This was unchanged in the past year. Facebook is used by
more than 95% of social media users from both sexes and
E. Other Support Databases at least 93% in all age groups. LinkedIn was the next most
1. Experts/consultants/volunteers in disaster popular social media platform, being used by 16% of
management. social networking users, up from 9% last year. Twitter was
2. Organisations working for disaster mitigation. used by 14% of social networking site users, up from 8%
3. Education/training centers last year, and Google+ was used by 8%.

Tasks ahead for the clearing house to achieve the Social Media in Natural Disasters
objectives can be analyzed as under: Online social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter,
Google+, etc. can act and try to solve many problems
Infrastructure during natural disasters. During disasters all the
Provision of state-of-the-art hardware, software,and conventional communications generally stop functioning.
communication technology. At this time social media or networking sites can stay
active. Online social networks allow the establishment of
Databases global relationships that are domain related or can be based
Compulsive efforts are to be undertaken to coordinate and on some need shared by the participants. Conducted
acquire comprehensive data on disaster management in research has found that though the use of mobile phones
varied formats, the various databases. The data acquired and email did predictably increase in the immediate
has to be organized into a proper structure to facilitate aftermath of the earthquake the use of social networking
efficient search/retrieval. The center should formulate sites also increased and even surpassed the use of more
common standards for creation of data, which will conventional methods of communication such as fixed
facilitate exchange of data between various organizations. phones (yahoo news 2011). Apart from the use of major
Creation of full text databases should take care of public social networking services, many companies
copyright law compliance. It is further necessary to have actively used their own secured corporate social
secure backup of the various databases to meet any networking services after disasters to confirm the safety of
emergency situations, in the form of CDs, parallel servers / employees As with any new technology, there remain
mirror sites etc. many hurdles between current use and optimal exploitation
of social media (Merchant, 2011).
Dissemination of data
Appropriate, reliable, communication channels should be During a natural disaster, social media can play a vital role
planned and established to disseminate the information connecting citizens to emergency response agencies; in
during disaster. The emphasis should be on research and fact through people’s widespread use of Facebook and
documentation on the quickest method of access to Twitter, people are beginning to expect it. In a 2010 study
information in times of disaster. by the Red Cross, three-fourths of respondents indicated
they would expect an emergency response agency to
11. SOCIAL NETWORKING respond within an hour of posting a call for help on a
social media platform. That same study showed Facebook
Over the past 10 years social media has changed the way and Twitter as the platforms of choice when it came to
people communicate with each other, and interact with receiving and posting information relating to citizens’
governments. It provides the ability for users to connect safety during an emergency.
with each other and form communities to socialize, share
information, or to achieve a common goal or interest. The Emergency support organizations such as the Red Cross
steady growth of social media and the ever changing list of also maintain Twitter accounts and use them to propogate

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International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 20
Volume 3, No. 1, January 2014

information to the public, such as how the volunteers can


help and where to get shelter and aid following a disaster.
The results of a latest study released by the Red Cross
showed that the public is now seeing social media as an
important medium to communicate with their families,
friends and colleagues as well as to search for help before
or after an emergency situation. Through the proliferation
of Facebook and Twitter, emergency response agencies
make use of the social media in managing and responding
to natural disasters.

12. CONCLUSION
Prevention is better than cure; people should be
empowered with information at the pre-disaster, during
disaster and post-disaster level for disaster preparedness.
Therefore more information centres are required and the
existing information centres are to be well equipped
updated with latest information sources for effective and
efficient handling of disaster prone situations created by
either the man made hazardous or natural hazards.

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Education, North Eastern Hill University Bijni
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[4] Mathew, Dolly : “Information technology and public
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[6] United Nations Development Programme (UNDP),
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[7] Aptekar, Lewis. 1994. “Environmental Disasters in
Global Perspective”. New York: G.K. Hall; Toronto:
Maxwell Macmillan Canada; New York: Maxwell
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