Introduction

A natural disaster is a major adverse event resulting from natural processes of the Earth; examples include floods,
hurricanes, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, and other geologic processes. A natural disaster can
cause loss of life or property damage,[1] and typically leaves some economic damage in its wake, the severity of which
depends on the affected population's resilience, or ability to recover and also on the infrastructure available.[2]
The 1999 Odisha cyclone (IMD designation BOB 03,[1] JTWC designation 05B[3]) was the strongest recorded tropical
cyclone in the North Indian Ocean and among the most destructive in the region.[note 1] The 1999 Odisha cyclone organized
into a tropical depression in the Andaman Sea on 25 October, though its origins could be traced back to an area of storms in
the Sulu Sea four days prior. The disturbance gradually strengthened as it took a west-northwesterly path, reaching cyclonic
storm strength the next day. Taking advantage of highly favorable conditions, the storm rapidly intensified, attaining super
cyclonic storm intensity on 28 October before peaking with winds of 260 km/h (160 mph) and a record-low pressure of
912 mbar (hPa; 26.93 inHg). The storm maintained this intensity as it made landfall on Odisha on 29 October. The cyclone
steadily weakened due to persistent land interaction and dry air, remaining quasi-stationary for two days before slowly
drifting offshore as a much weaker system; the storm dissipated on 1 November over the Bay of Bengal.
Although its primary effects were felt in a localized area of India, the outer fringes of the super cyclone
impacted Myanmar and Bangladesh. Ten people were killed in the former, while two were killed in the latter by the
storm's rainbands. The storm was the most severe to strike Odisha in the 20th century, raking the state and adjacent areas
with high storm surge, powerful winds, and torrential rainfall. The storm's impacts exacerbated the damage caused by
a very severe cyclone that struck the same region less than two weeks earlier. The 5–6 m (16–20 ft) surge brought water up
to 35 km (20 mi) inland, carrying along with it coastal debris and inundating towns and villages. The surge combined with
heavy rains to produce widespread flooding, damaging around 1.6 million homes and causing rivers to breach 20,005 flood
embankments. The storm's effects destroyed numerous crops, including sugar cane, rice, and other winter-time harvests.
Although estimates of the death toll varied significantly—at times suggesting 30,000 fatalities—the Government of India
enumerated 9,887 fatalities in the country, of which a majority were caused by storm surge; over 8,000 deaths occurred
in Jagatsinghpur. The total damage cost of the destruction wrought by the super cyclone amounted to US$4.44 billion.[note 2]
Recovery efforts were extensive following the storm's passage. The Government of India allocated ₹3 billion (US$69.3
million) to the Odishan state government, supplementing earlier contributions made towards relief from the earlier
cyclone. Various branches of the Indian Armed Forces were dispatched to aid the recovery efforts. Contributions from
foreign governments amounted to nearly US$13 million, with a majority allocated by the United States. Alongside foreign
and domestic government contributions, between 12–14 international aid agencies concurrently participated in relief
efforts in the storm's aftermath.

Objective of the study

What is Disaster

Almost everyday, newspapers, radio and television channels carry reports on disaster
striking several parts of the world. But what is a disaster? The term disaster owes its origin to the French word
“Desastre” which is a combination of two words ‘des’ meaning
bad and ‘aster’ meaning star. Thus the term refers to ‘Bad or Evil star’. A disaster can
be defined as “A serious disruption in the functioning of the community or a society causing wide spread material,
economic, social or environmental losses which exceed
the ability of the affected society to cope using its own resources”.

A disaster is a result from the combination of hazard, vulnerability and insufficient capacity or measures to reduce
the potential chances of risk.

Types of Disaster
Disasters are mainly of 2 types,
1. Natural disasters. Example – earthquakes, floods, landslides, etc.
2. Man made disasters. Example – war, bomb blasts, chemical leaks, etc.

The phases of all disasters, be it natural or man made, are the same. The disasters often differ in
quantity of damage caused or in quality of the type of medical consequences. For example earthquakes
cause a lot of physical injury and fractures, floods cause drowning
deaths and infections, chemical leaks cause toxic manifestations, etc.
DEFINITION OF DISASTER
Disaster’ is defined as a crisis situation causing wide spread damage which far exceeds our ability to
recover. Thus, by definition, there cannot be a perfect ideal system that prevents damage, because
then it would not be a disaster. It has to suffocate our ability to recover. Only then it can be called as
‘disaster’. Disasters are not totally discrete events. Their possibility of occurrence, time, place and
severity of the strike can be reasonably and in some cases accurately predicted by technological and
scientific advances. It has been established there is a definite pattern in their occurrences and hence
we can to some extent reduce the impact of damage though we cannot reduce the extent of damage
itself.

ODISHA SUPER CYCLONE 1999

On 29th October 1999, the Super Cyclone , also known as Paradip Cyclone, hit Odisha with wind speeds
of up to 250 kmph. It caused the deaths of about 10,000 people, and heavy to extreme damage in its
path of destruction. Often termed as the black Friday tragedy, the cyclone flattened lakhs of houses,
uprooted trees and destroyed infrastructure. Thousands of livestock were killed, paddy and other crop
fields were submerged and hundred thousands of people were affected by the disaster. Life in the coastal
Orissa was brought to a standstill. Large areas along the coastline were inundated. The cyclone
destroyed or caused damage to lives and properties in the coastal districts such as Balasore, Bhadrak,
Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Puri and Ganjam.
A white paper on the loss and damage profile of the 1999 super cyclone prepared by the State
Government in 2000 stated that there were 9,885 human casualties. The paper estimated that 13 lakh
hectares of paddy crop, 1.76 lakh hectares of vegetables and 2.57 lakh hectares of other crops were
destroyed. The disaster destroyed 22,143 fishing nets and 9,085 boats causing great loss in the lives of
fisher folk community. The aftermath of cyclone also saw major loss of livestock in the cyclone affected
area. The report of the government put the loss of cattle heads at 3,15,886, poultry at 18,83,468 and
other small animals at 3,16,372.

Disaster Management Cycle

Disaster Risk Management includes sum total of all activities, programmes and measures which can be
taken up before, during and after a disaster with the purpose to avoid a disaster, reduce its impact or
recover from its losses. The three key stages of activities that are taken up within disaster risk
management are:

1. Before a disaster (pre-disaster).

Activities taken to reduce human and property losses caused by a potential hazard. For example carrying
out awareness campaigns, strengthening the existing weak structures, preparation of the disaster
management plans at household and community level etc. Such risk reduction measures taken under this
stage are termed as mitigation and preparedness activities.

2. During a disaster (disaster

occurrence).

Initiatives taken to ensure that the needs and provisions of victims are met and suffering is minimized.
Activities taken under this stage are called emergency response activities.

3. After a disaster (post-disaster)

Initiatives taken in response to a disaster with a purpose to achieve early recovery and rehabilitation of
affected communities, immediately after a disaster strikes. These are called as response and recovery
activities.

NATURAL DISASTERS IN BHUBANESWAR, CUTTACK COULD COST

ODISHA
If natural disasters like cyclone, earthquake and flood strike the twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack anytime now, it

would not just paralyse the two growing urban centres, the economic losses could be about one third of the State’s Budget.

A report of World Bank titled “A Local Resilience Action Plans for Bhubaneswar and Cuttack cities” has estimated that the

total amount of loss to properties and wages due to cyclone, earthquake and flood would be over a little more than one third

of the State’s annual Budget. The report done in partnership with IT services major RMSI has pegged the total loss to

properties and wages at a little over Rs 28000 crore if the natural disasters were to strike the two cities –20 kms apart – at the

same time. In 2015-16, Odisha government presented a Budget of Rs 84,487.77 crore.

Though Odisha is not among the top 10 urbanised States with about 17% of its population residing in urban areas, the report

said the high urban growth rate of 26.8 per cent during the last decade (2001-2011) has made it essential for the government

to reduce the cities’ vulnerability to disaster.

The report was submitted to the government late last month and due for discussion by state housing and urban development

department and World Bank officials this week.

The report said about 61% of Bhubaneswar is under extreme to moderate cyclone risk while the same for Cuttack was 20 per

cent. While 59% of Bhubaneswar is vulnerable to extreme to moderate urban flood risk, in Cuttack more than 50% of the city

were exposed to extreme flood risk. Flood risk in both the cities was basically due to urban flooding, which is due to poor

drainage facilities including narrow channel exits, encroachment of flood plain areas, and choking of drains due to dumping

of solid waste. Both the cities have a combined population of about 14.5 lakhs as per 2011 census.

Located in Seismic Zone-III, almost 50% of Bhubaneswar is under extreme to moderate earthquake risk while 20% of the

city comes under the extreme to high earthquake susceptibility zone. Cuttack which is also situated in Seismic Zone III like

Bhubaneswar, however has 14% of the city under the extreme to high earthquake risk category.

But in terms of loss to properties due to earthquake and cyclone, Cuttack fared worse due to old structures. The report

estimated that probable maximum loss to buildings in Bhubaneswar due to earthquake would be Rs 10000 crore with

residential buildings alone accounting Rs 6009 crore. Cuttack which also sits on Seismic Zone 3 like Bhubaneshwar however

would fare worse in case of earthquake due to old building structures. Though about 14% of Cuttack comes under the

extreme to high earthquake risk category, the probable maximum loss due to the earthquake would be Rs 18000 crore with

residential buildings alone accounting for Rs 15000 crore.

A similar report prepared by UNDP earlier had estimated that in the event of an earthquake, around 55,000 people in the city

could be affected while the number of casualties could be around 2,000. In terms of wage loss, the working class in
Bhubaneswar and Cuttack may suffer wage loss of Rs 50 crore for anything between a 4-day long cyclone or 10-day-long

flood.

Using several climate change models the report also sounded warning over another climatic threat – rising temperature.

Projecting a rise of at least 1.5 degree celsius in maximum (daytime) temperature over most parts of the State and 2 degree

Celsius rise in night-time minimum temperature in the northern part of the State, the report said the rise in night-time

minimum temperature could exceed 3.5°C in the northern part of the State by the end of this century.

Odisha

India – Villages Isolated After Major Flooding in Odisha

17 JULY, 2017
Disaster officials in the Indian state of Odisha said that flash floods occurred in Rayagada and Kalahandi districts after heavy rainfall on 15
July. Local media report that at least…
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India – Over 120 Dead After Monsoon Rains Cause Floods and Landslides in 8 States
20 JULY, 2016
The National Disaster Management Division (NDMD) of the Ministry of Home Affairs in India reports that over 5 million people across 8
states are currently affected by flooding. In a…
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India – Floods in 5 States Leave Over 80 Dead
3 AUGUST, 2015
In a statement made yesterday, the Indian Ministry for Home Affairs said that at least 86 people have died in flood-related incidents in
India over the last few days. Further…
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India – Floods in Odisha After 3 Rivers Overflow – 2 Dead, 240,000 Affected

30 JULY, 2015
Local media are reporting that 2 people have been killed in recent flooding in the state of Odisha in eastern India. Flooding has affected
240,000 people across 282 villages in…
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Odisha Floods Worsen – 45 Dead, 3 Million Affected

11 AUGUST, 2014
The ongoing flood situation in Odisha has now left 45 people dead. According to recent local media reports, there are currently 4.8 lakh /
480,000 people living in 460 villages…
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Death Toll Rises in Odisha Floods
8 AUGUST, 2014
Officials announced yesterday that the number of people killed in the floods in Odisha now stands at 35. There still remain over 100,000
people displaced, but officials are expecting the…
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Flood Situation in Odisha Worsens

6 AUGUST, 2014
Odisha’s Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) P.K. Mohapatra said yesterday that there are currently 17,000 people currently staying in
relief camps around the state. 7,000 of them are in Sambalpur which…
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3 More Killed in Odisha Floods

5 AUGUST, 2014
Three people have been killed in floods in the Indian state of Odisha over the last two days. Torrential rainfall – some areas saw 350 mm in
just a few…
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Deadly Floods in Chhattisgarh and Odisha (Updated)
25 JULY, 2014
Odisha Update: 3 bodies have been found in Bargarh district, Odisha. The bodies were in a car that was swept away in flood waters on
Monday 21 July 2014. It…
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Tropical Cyclone Lehar, India

27 NOVEMBER, 2013
Battered by Phailin, grazed by Helen, Andhra Pradesh now is now bracing itself for yet another tropical cyclone. Lehar is expected to make
landfall near Machillipatnam, Andhra Pradesh, in the…
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Cyclone Helen Makes Landfall

22 NOVEMBER, 2013
As predicted by India Meteorological Department, Cyclone Helen made landfall today near the city of Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh at
around 13:30 local time. So far the storm has affected…
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Cyclone Helen, India
21 NOVEMBER, 2013
Update: The speed and trajectory of Cyclone Helen has changed slightly since our earlier report below. The cyclone is expected to make
landfall around midday on 22 November (local time).…
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Andhra Pradesh Floods: Before and After

29 OCTOBER, 2013
India’s Meteorological Department have forecast further heavy rainfall for Andhra Pradesh that could last until 31st October. Odisha, West
Bengal and Andhra Pradesh have endured severely heavy rainfall for the…
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Floods in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh

25 OCTOBER, 2013
Heavy rainfall in the aftermath of Cyclone Phailin left parts of the Indian states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh under flood water for the
last few days. Around 6,500 people…
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North East India Floods Update
18 OCTOBER, 2013
Cyclone Phailin brought heavy rainfall throughout a number of india’s north eastern states over the last few days. below is a summary of
the current situation. Odisha Floods are reported…
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Odisha Floods
15 OCTOBER, 2013
With the worst of the storm having passed, huge areas of north eastern India are now facing the heavy rainfall and flooding brought by the
aftermath of Cyclone Phailin. As…
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CONCLUSION
The dissertation documented and analyzed a disaster situation as a social
event triggered by a natural hazard in a risky environment. It viewed it as a
socially constructed process rooted in an unsustainable pattern of development
and gendered discriminated space. The dissertation provides data On how
women’s existing social inequality, literacy, health, and everyday patterns of work and living contributed to
disproportionate discrimination. It substantiates earlier studies such as the well known one by Rivers on the 1943
Bengal famine and Krishnaraj, Maithreyi work on women during the Latur earthquake 1.
The relevant information for this study was collected from different stake
holders by applying various techniques of primary data collection such as
interview schedule including structured and unstructured questionnaires for
women and children. Interviews with government officials, organization heads and women formed the core of
qualitative methodology.
The dissertation sets out to analyze the perspective of globalization in a
disaster situation and in this context moves beyond the economic concept of globalization. In the chapter on
globalization the emerging concept of moving beyond the economic interpretation was discussed and the political
and cultural dimension was made part of the discourse. It tried to bring women and children as visualized from a
globalised process during disasters: Within the disaster system which has shifted its paradigm from management
to mitigation and preparedness new global thought and processes have emerged. Among these is the emergence
of global humanitarian policies and new actors across the globe
including India.