A Case Study in Uttarakhand, Northern India - Geological & Mining ...

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What impact do these programmes have on increasing community levels ofpreparedness and disaster mitigation? Are the awareness campaigns at alluseful? What are homeowner perceptions of earthquake-safe buildingfeatures?Although recent disasters such as Uttarkashi and Chamoli earthquakes haveundoubtedly impacted local residents' level of awareness to disasters in StudyArea A, the training programmes and associated awareness initiatives offeredthrough PSI and CDI have also proven successful in increasing the overall level ofawareness and have increased community members' recognition of earthquakebuilding features. These campaigns have proven successful in that thecommunities are sensitised to the potential for disasters and have, moreimportantly, mobilised the communities into forming groups prepared to respond tosuch events.The increased awareness to essential building features for earthquake-safeconstructions is noteworthy; however, more information should be disseminatedregarding the overall costs of such construction practices. In both regions coveredby this study, the most common misconception with respect to earthquake-safefeatures was that the costs involved are very high; in some instances respondentsbelieved that incorporating earthquake-safe features into their building woulddouble the overall costs. Community based disaster preparedness is an importantcatalyst for behaviour change; as PSI initiatives have proven successful in theRudraprayag district, it is recommended that these programmes be repeated inother areas of the state equally prone to natural disasters but lacking thisfundamental information and knowledge.Are houses being better built in the region as a result of these initiatives?What building trends are emerging in the state?The Role of NGOs in Disaster Mitigation and Response – A Case Study in Uttarakhand, Northern India 69
In Study Area A the number of earthquake-safe houses built by trained masonshas increased while those built by untrained masons has not changed significantly.The overall percentage of earthquake-safe constructions in Study region A isnearly 60 % higher than in Study Region B, indicating that trained masons areemploying their skills to build safer houses in the region. The assessment revealsthat the training workshops have a positive effect for increasing earthquake-safebuilding practices; masons are not simply attending workshops but are retaininginformation, and that knowledge is, as intended, being put into practice. It isrecommended that further dissemination of information be provided on a regularbasis in conjunction with monitoring of building practices. The increase in thenumber of frame structures built and the use of concrete in the region is importantto note. While the number of frame structures in the Study Area A has increased,the percentage of those that are earthquake-safe has decreased. Thesetechniques need to be mainstreamed into the training workshop pedagogy in orderto maintain the desired high level of earthquake-safe building practice in the region.As past studies have suggested (Chopra et al., 2005; Mahmood and Soni, 2006), itis recommended that construction be monitored. Changes in state policy onbuilding codes and tax incentives need to be reviewed and subsequentlydeveloped. Retrofitting projects for communities as a whole are unrealistic,however, hospitals, schools, and other community buildings should be targets forsuch mitigation strategies.What is the role of NGOs in disaster preparedness and mitigation?Perhaps the most important point to bear in mind in the context of disastermitigation and preparedness initiatives is that they will not necessarily bear fruitimmediately. Behaviour change is a slow process and may take years to becomemainstream; thus it may require on the order of a decade to alter community anddonor attitude towards mitigation and preparedness. Unlike immediate relief andthe development associated with reconstruction phases, preparedness is more of asilent growth that requires continued attention to properly develop. Results forpreparedness and mitigation are difficult to benchmark; essentially, andThe Role of NGOs in Disaster Mitigation and Response – A Case Study in Uttarakhand, Northern India 70
Page 1 and 2:
The Role of Non GovernmentalOrganis
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Table of contentsChapter 1 - Introd
Page 5 and 6:
List of figuresFigure 1.1: Study re
Page 7 and 8:
preparedness, and has potential to
Page 9 and 10:
This case study investigates the im
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• What are homeowner perceptions
Page 13 and 14:
Seismic activity in this area is du
Page 15 and 16:
The study comprises two regions: St
Page 17 and 18:
1.4.1 - b Study Area B- Almora dist
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etc. operational). The study involv
Page 21 and 22:
Chapter 2 - Theoretical Orientation
Page 23 and 24:
2.1.2 VulnerabilityVulnerability is
Page 25 and 26: of a disaster everyone knows how to
Page 27 and 28: disaster management in the country,
Page 29 and 30: Despite the apparent increased cons
Page 31 and 32: 2.3.1 Disaster Mitigation and Prepa
Page 33 and 34: save lives. This event marked a pri
Page 35 and 36: Systems technologies and education
Page 37 and 38: As suggested previously, there is a
Page 39 and 40: on the main agenda (Benson et al, 2
Page 41 and 42: Frame structureFramed structures ha
Page 43 and 44: The curriculum of the PSI workshops
Page 45 and 46: Figure 2.2a: Community based disast
Page 47 and 48: district irrespective of the fact t
Page 49 and 50: etrofitting, monitoring and homeown
Page 51 and 52: structures as an alarming forty-fiv
Page 53 and 54: Reponses for what features masons t
Page 55 and 56: trained masons in the Study Area A
Page 57 and 58: ecommended that a similar study be
Page 59 and 60: 3.1.2b Awareness and Dissemination
Page 61 and 62: It is interesting to note that when
Page 63 and 64: Community based disaster preparedne
Page 65 and 66: 3.1.3 - Section 3 Housing Impact As
Page 67 and 68: Load-bearing1.single steel rod in e
Page 69 and 70: The overall proportion of newly bui
Page 71 and 72: etween stirrups of 6-12 inches. Alt
Page 73 and 74: Table 3.7: Percentage of safe house
Page 75: 3.2 DiscussionThe discussion segmen
Page 79 and 80: 2) mitigation measures were taken i
Page 81 and 82: 3.3 ConclusionsIn conclusion, the s
Page 83 and 84: ReferencesAlexander, D., 1997. The
Page 85 and 86: Guptasarma, D. 1996. Is the Seismic
Page 87 and 88: Telford, J. and Cosgrave, J., 2007.
Page 89 and 90: Annex I - Earthquake safe featuresT
Page 91 and 92: The Role of NGOs in Disaster Mitiga
Page 97 and 98: Annex 2 - Mason Interview ResultsSt
Page 99 and 100: 11. How to make such a course more
Page 101 and 102: sloped roof 0 0 0 0.00 0.00 1 2.78s
Page 103 and 104: 17. Do homeowners request earthquak
Page 105 and 106: light roof 1 0 1 2.78 0 0.00RCC 1 3
Page 107 and 108: 6. How long have you lived in the v
Page 109 and 110: 16. Do you have an emergency commun
Page 111 and 112: 26. What activities related to the
Page 113 and 114: 36. Would you prefer traditional ma
Page 115 and 116: Appendix IV - Breakdown of earthqua
Page 117: Appendix IV - Breakdown of earthqua
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