Natural disasters have always fascinated scientists and the common man alike. Unprecedented and unimaginable in scale, natural disasters have the capacity to change the face of Nature. Natural disasters are an area of multidisciplinary research and policy analysis. In spite of technological advancement, man is unable to predict or control disasters. The perennial question is ‘Is disaster natural or manmade?’ The answer cannot be either but a mixed one. To begin with, it may be natural, but often gets precipitated by human intervention. Disasters turn into massive calamities if not properly managed. From an economic perspective, a disaster implies some combination of losses in human, physical and financial capital and a reduction in economic activity. India has a long history of disasters. Frequent earthquakes, cyclones, floods, drought and tsunami have created awareness about management of natural disasters. The effects of these disasters could be minimized by strictly following the appropriate management practices. The purpose of this book is to increase awareness of disaster management issues. It focuses on the costs, consequences and experiences of natural disasters. It highlights the ideas for improving the governance and management of disaster preparedness and rehabilitation to help beat the death toll and reduce losses.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prabha Shastri Ranade
Prabha Shastri Ranade holds a Master's degree in Geography and Ph.D. in Social Sciences from Nagpur University. She has over 25 years of teaching and research. experience. She is currently working as Consulting Editor at Icfai Business School Research Centre, Ahmedabad. She started her career as Research Officer at National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organization, (Government of India) Kolkata, and has moved to teaching of Geography at Nagpur University. Later, she was awarded UGC's Research Associateship for post doctoral research projects, under which she worked at Devi Ahilya Vishwa Vidyalaya, Indore and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi for about 15 years. She has contributed numerous articles in academic journals, conference proceedings, edited books, newspapers and the Encyclopedia of World Geography (New York). She has edited a few books published by the Icfai University Press and also published four books, 'Maharashtra', under States of Our Union Series, by the Publications Division of Government. of India; Population Dynamics in India by Ashish Publishing House, New Delhi; Industries and Environment: A Study of Impact Assessment by APH Publishing Corporation, New Delhi; and a text book on "Geography" for the Maharashtra State Text Book Bureau, Pune. She has presented research papers at various national and international conferences and seminars, held within the country and abroad. She was the recipient of "Young Scientist" honour by the Indian Science Congress for her research contribution. Her areas of expertise and interests include geography, population, resources and environment.
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