Finance Commission-XIII has observed that effective disaster response requires trained manpower to deal with complex situations where effective and speedy handling reduces the impact of a disaster on human life and property. Therefore it is necessary to continuously undertake measures to build capacity amongst those responsible for disaster response and augmenting public awareness. Accordingly, FC-XIII has recommended a grant of Rs. 525 crore for building capacity within the administrative machinery for better handling of disaster response and for preparation of district and state level disaster management plans as envisaged under the Disaster Management Act of 2005 (DM Act).
The Ministry of Finance, Government of India vide letter dated 5th October 2010 has released Rs. 4 crore as GIA to the State of HP for capacity building for disaster response and conveyed the scheme of utilization of funds under the above mentioned head inter alia for the following activities:
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Training/capacity building of stakeholders and functionaries in State.
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Preparing Disaster Management Plans (DMPs) on the basis of Hazard, Risk and Venerability Analysis of the State.
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Setting up and strengthening of the Emergency Operation Centres (EOCs).
The State received Rs. 20 crore (Rs. 4 crore per annum) over the next five years, i.e. 2010-15. Accordingly the scheme for utilization of the GIA has been drafted for the State of HP. The proposal under the GIA has been prepared for the following activities:
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Training of Government functionaries and other stakeholders.
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Setting up and strengthening of EOCs at the State and District HQs.
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Conduct of HVRA study of the entire State for effective and better planning, mitigation, preparedness and response.
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Preparation of DMPs at the State, District and local level.
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Conduct of KAP studies for effective and targeted training and awareness generation strategies.
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Awareness generation for capacity building in disaster response.