Behind the Scenes: Understanding Governance for Flood Preparedness & Response in Assam
Over 1 lakh lives and 5 lakh crore worth of property have been lost due to floods in India in the past 7 decades, making it one of the most devastating natural disasters for the country. Assam particularly is one of the worst affected states in the country by the recurring floods. In 2019 alone, over 50 lakh people and 15 lakh hectares of agricultural land were affected by floods in the state.
Assam has a vast network of rivers and their tributaries, intersecting its geography, which coupled with geo-climatic factors, makes it prone to floods every year. The Brahmaputra River Valley and Barak River Valley are the two major river systems which cover almost 90% of the total land area. Overall, almost 40% of the entire land area is flood prone with over half a million people being directly affected by floods each year. Given the scale and severity of the problem, the system of governance plays an important role in managing the situation. This article is an attempt at understanding the administrative framework responsible for flood management in Assam.
Governing Disasters
As per the National Disaster Management Act and the United Nations’ Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, it is a matter of high urgency to build resilience to natural disasters to minimise their adverse impact on lives and property. This means not just meeting the immediate needs in case of disaster like relief, shelter etc. but also, pre-disaster preparedness which includes risk assessment, adequate infrastructure, capacity networks and recovery measures post-disaster. This necessitates mobilization of large amounts of resources in the form of public money, creation of specialised agencies and departments — all working under an inter-connected framework. As citizens, it is imperative to understand the role played by the different actors when it comes to flood management, so we can engage with, and participate in these processes better.
Management of floods can be divided into three stages — Pre-Floods, During Floods and Post-Floods. To ensure that all these stages are addressed, the Disaster Management Act was adopted in the Parliament in 2005. This act lays down the guidelines for management of natural disasters including preparedness, response and mitigation. Based on this Act, each state created its own State Disaster Management Authority which created a State Disaster Management Plan for their respective states.
The set-up in Assam
In Assam, the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), created in 2006, is responsible for overall disaster management, which includes- risk assessment, planning and strategizing, research, partnerships, immediate flood relief and damage assessment. The chairperson of the ASDMA is the Chief Minister of the State. Although ASDMA is responsible for management of all disasters such as earthquakes, cyclones and even Covid-19, in Assam, the focus remains on floods. The ASDMA operates at the scale of districts through District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs) which is responsible for immediate flood relief, capacity building of ground responders, surveying flood damage and filing reports every day when floods occur. Chaired by the Deputy Commissioner of the district, the DDMAs work with local self-government institutions — Panchayats in villages and Municipal bodies in urban areas. They file revenue circle-wise damage reports which are then used by the State Executive Committee of the ASDMA to sanction funds under the State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF) for rehabilitation work. The Revenue and Disaster Management Department clears these funds which are then used by the Water Resources Department, the Public Works Roads Department, the Soil Conservation Department, among other departments, to mitigate damage by floods such as breach of embankments, damage to roads and bridges, soil erosion, etc. Boats and other equipment such as flashlights, life-jackets, tools, etc. for rescue work are managed by the DDMAs themselves, as per the District Disaster Management Plans. However, there are plans for streamlining this process to make it more efficient.
The Water Resources Department (WRD) is another important department in terms of execution of disaster management plans for floods. It has the objective of building resilience to floods in terms of developing and improving flood prevention infrastructure to control the river erosion and inundation, restoration of breaches, siltation measures, building embankments, sluice gates, dykes, flood walls, etc. WRD also collects and compiles hydrological data regarding floods in the state. These measures are aimed at short-term mitigation as per the State Disaster Management Plan. The department operates through divisions in various districts with executive engineers and junior officers assigned to each. For Financial Year 2021–22, the allocated budget for the Water Resources Department was 893 crores. Other than its own allocated budget, the WRD also utilises funds under Additional Central Assistance, the State Disaster Relief Fund and external funding from international agencies to achieve its goals.
External agencies such as the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank also play an important role in this picture. Anchored to the Water Resources Department is the Flood and River Erosion Management Agency of Assam (FREMAA) which is a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the implementation of specific Asian Development Bank and World Bank funded projects in Assam. These projects aim to introduce structural changes such as institutional capacity building and non-structural changes such as better integration of communities affected by floods including their rehabilitation and relocation. FREMAA also works closely with the ASDMA.
Various Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) also play an important role and come together with government bodies for stakeholder consultations, volunteering during times of floods and vocalising the grievances of citizens. The ASDMA has several NGOs registered which help during times of need. Moreover, under the ‘Aapda Mitra’ scheme, citizens are trained for volunteer work during disasters.
Conclusion
Floods cause immense damage to lives, property and livelihoods every year. Given the changing patterns of climate and weakening ecosystems, this issue is likely to become even worse in the coming years. Building resilience to climatic disasters such as floods requires all involved stakeholders — government, civil society organisations, private enterprise and communities to engage with each other and work together in synergy. Awareness in citizens regarding the processes and systems of governance is crucial for this to happen. Understanding the larger framework within which the government operates is the first step in bringing about that awareness. This article is the first in a series to that end. We hope to develop a better understanding of the overall public framework which includes administrative set-up, budgeting, procurement, flow of funds, and other mechanisms which comprise the flood governance structure in Assam.
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