Cbdp Brochure

8/14/2019 Cbdp Brochure

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Community Based Disaster Preparedness Project

An initiative of Caritas India & Kerala Social Service Forum

build resilient

communities in thecoastal belts


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Natural disasters have been visiting

every part of the globe at one time

or other. Our world is becoming more

vulnerable to disasters. Community based disaster

preparedness project is the commitment of the

Kerala Social Service Forum to the coastal

community to effectively manage disasters. Projectenvisions creation of resilient communities capable

of managing disaster where Preparedness,

mitigation and risk reduction are the pillars.

Paradigm shift effected is that local communities,

and not the outside agencies are the principal

respondents to a disaster. We envision a

community aware of its resources and in position

to take up responsibilities. And yet disasterpreparedness cannot be an isolated venture but

has to be coupled with developmental initiatives.

It is a question of addressing geological and social

vulnerabilities from a development angle. Project

is being implemented in tsunami affected five

districts of Kerala viz, Trivandrum, Kollam, Alleppey,

Ernakulam and Trichur in coordinating partnership

with Diocesan Social Service Societies.

GoalCapacitation of the coastal communities of

selected wards of five districts of Kerala to

effectively manage disasters and promote

sustainable development through community

mobilisation.

Strategic Objectives Strengthen capacities of Community based

organisations and structures to address

development issues in a collective manner.

Promote and replicate locally specific water

and sanitation structures and create

community consciousness on eco restoration

and environment. Facilitate lobbying and networking with PRIs,

Line Departments and other institutions for

sustainability of the community initiatives.

Community Based

Disaster Preparedness


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History of world is mans tryst with

disasters. It is after mutations and

metamorphosis that the universe has

come to the present form and appearance. The

truth is that many species that existed before the

emergence of man into the universe are now

extinct. The evolutionary principle- survival of thefittest is natures law that can never be negated.

The species, that could not survive natural

catastrophes like floods and earthquakes, have

vanished from the earth. Natural disasters have

wiped out from the face of the earth millions of

human beings. More have been killed in wars,

communal riots and genocides unleashed by

dictators.

Harbour waves always trigger up fear of the

traditional fishermens. But this time the killer

Tsunami not only triggered up the fear but also

rampaged in almost all coastal areas of the South

East Asia with out any discrimination on the class,

creed or sex. It was Sunday after Christmas - 26th

December, the sea receded to bare the rocks atthe bottoms. People were amazed at the sight

but it was the lull before the rushing waves that

devastated entire villages in our coast. Giant tidal

waves engulfed our coast with unknown revenge.

The earthquake, which measured 8.9 on the

Richter scale, is counted as the most powerful in

the last 40 years all over the world. The after

effect of Tsunami left thousands dead in SouthEast Asia and many more homeless.

As far as Kerala is concerned the giant tidal waves

left its fury in all its velocity and wrath in Kollam

district. Unprecedented Tsunami of 2004 acted

as a reason for the community mobilisation of

people in the affected areas of Kerala. Instead of

viewing the field from a birds eye view, the team

has ventured out into the field through a

caterpillars eye view and has overcome all

blockades like a caterpillar trekking over anything

that seems perturbed.

Caterpillars

Eye View


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Resilience building is an important part of

any disaster response programme and

disaster mitigation project was initiated

soon after the rehabilitation was over. Stakeholder

participation was one of the corner stone in the

implementation of a community owned project.Project team oriented the community about the

need of Community Based Disaster Preparedness

programme and the capacitated community

identified the risk that would affect their life and

livelihoods through Participatory Learning

Exercises. Building resilience is to be read in the

context of advancing the dream of a nation or a

community to attain self reliance.

Based on the output of the participatory learnings

the community chalked out the action plan to

mitigate any probable disasters. Village

Contingency Plan is a process of developing

strategies, arrangements and procedures to

address the humanitarian needs of those who can

be adversely affected by potential crisis/disaster.An active contingency planning process enables

individuals, teams, organisations and communities

to establish working relationship between them

which can make a critical difference in the

response mechanisms during a crisis situation. Plan

helps to reinforce coordination mechanisms by

keeping them active and by clarifying roles and

responsibilities before a crisis.

Village Contingency Fund is the life line of

Emergency Response Teams of the project. Survival

of the programme after the project period

depends on the volume of fund available for the

action of the emergency response teams.

Formation of community owned structures like

Emergency Response Teams, CoordinationCommittee, Federation of SHGs, and Disaster

Management Teams were identified as the next

steps in the disaster risk reduction efforts.

Participatory Learning

and Analysis


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Primary respondents of any kind of disaster

is the community itself and realizing that

unless community is capacitated disaster

preparedness will remain in papers, we sowed the

seeds of peoples groups. A focus on resilience

means putting greater emphasis on whatcommunities can do for themselves and how to

strengthen their capacities, rather than

concentrating on their vulnerability disaster or

their needs in an emergency. A disaster resilient

community is the safest possible community that

we have the knowledge to design and build in a

natural hazard context, minimizing its vulnerability

by maximizing the application of Disaster RiskReduction measures. DRR is there fore collection

of actions, or process, undertaken towards

achieving resilience.

Emergency Response Teams have been formed in

intervention villages. Training in specific tasks

associated with disaster preparedness was

imparted to the members. In association withvarious government and non government

departments training were provided. The teams

include Early Warning Team, Search and Rescue

Team, Medical and First Aid Team, Relief and

Rehabilitation Team & Damage Assessment Team.

Mock drills are conducted once in a while to keep

the community vigilant to probable disasters.

Thousands of volunteers clubbed into teams are

holding the fort in forty four coastal villages to

combat and manage the recurring disasters like

sea erosion, flash floods and epidemics. Regular

mock drills keep the villagers vigilant to any

situations. Provision of megaphone, First Aid Kit

and Search and Rescue materials has increased

the capacity of the villagers to overcome any risksituations by there own.

Formation and Training of Task

Force Teams for a disaster

resilient community


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Prevention is better than cure, is an old saying

which is very apt in the context of disaster

management. Every year colossal amount of

resources are being used by our Government as

well as Aid agencies in relief and rehabilitation

measures. It is now becoming increasingly evidentand mitigation and investment in disaster

preparedness can save thousand of lives, vital

economic assets, livelihoods and reduce the cost

of overall disaster relief.

Community Based Disaster Preparedness has now

became a culture of living for the people of the

coastal areas of Kerala. Community has ownedup the project and they are now aware of disasters.

Task forces have taken up the responsibility of

managing disasters and in this response they

responded to several incidents like flash floods,

fire outbreak and evacuation of people at time of

sea erosion. CBDP is now deep rooted in the

hearts of the people of the reference area. Project

opened up a new way for the people whom werefacing recurrent disasters like flash flood, tidal

waves, sea erosion and they echoes their voice

We are prepared

Natural hazards will always challenge us. But

it is within our power to ensure that poverty

does not turn hazards into unmanageable

disasters. And it is within our power to join

forces, address the immense complexities of

disaster reduction, and build a world of

resilient communities and nations equipped

to counter the adverse impact of natural

hazards and related environmental and

technological disasters.

Mr. Kofi Annan

Former UN Secretary General

We are Prepared


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Illustrations by

Preparedness is the Key in combating Disasters

Warning! Cyclone is

nearing the coast.Dont go for fishing

Ok we are not going tosea today

Move the women andchildren to safer places

Let us take refuge atschool

Kerala Social Service ForumAMOS Centre, Adichira, Thellakom P.O., Kottayam (Dist).Kerala, India. Pin - 686 016Phone: 0481 - 2594802, 2594803E-mail: [email protected]

www.kssf.org

Cbdp Brochure

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