India is highly vulnerable to natural disasters. Three major disasters in five years (the 1999 Orissa cyclone, the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, and the December 2004 tsunami) each killed more than 10,000 people and affected millions. A major lesson learned from these tragic events was that better community preparedness – particularly at the local level – saves lives, reduces property losses, and mitigates economic impacts in the short and long terms.

USAID’s partnership with the Government of India’s and the United Nations Development Program’s (UNDP) Disaster Risk Management program helps communities prepare. Working with communities in 20 multi-hazard prone districts in five states, the project helps communities develop disaster plans, identify vulnerabilities and overcome them, and put in place crucial disaster response systems that save lives.

To reach effective levels of community preparedness, the Disaster Risk Management project:

• Provides emergency rescue kits to district administrations and municipalities
• Forms disaster management committees that coordinate planning and responses at the national, state and local government levels
• Instructs thousands of community members in first aid techniques
• Helps communities develop disaster management plans
• Trains masons in disaster resistant construction so that buildings can withstand the forces of nature better
• Creates a web-based database of material and human resources available to respond to a disaster – allowing for better coordination and sharing of resources in complex situations.

By the time of its completion, USAID and the UNDP will have provided 20,000 villages with the training and tools they need to help their communities to prepare for and respond to disasters.