Centre-Staging International Human Rights, Humanitarian and Environmental Concerns in the Natural Disaster Management Legal Regime: An Evaluative Study

TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS;
INTERNATIONAL LEGAL DOCUMENTS;
CODIFIED LEGAL DOCUMENTS OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES;
JUDICIAL DECISIONS OF VARIOUS JURISDICTIONS;
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION;
1.1. The Context;
1.2. Relationship between the International Law and Disaster Management;
1.3. Review of Literature;
1.4. Research Problem;
1.5. Scope and Objective;
1.6. Hypotheses;
1.7. Research Questions;
1.8. Chapterization;
1.9. Research Methods;
1.10. Limitations of Study;
1.11. Mode of citation;
CHAPTER II: PROTECTION OF RIGHT TO ADEQUATE FOOD, PUBLIC HEALTH & SANITATION;
2.1. Concept of Right to Adequate Food;
2.1.1. Obligation of the State;
2.1.2. Issues relating to Food Assistance during Emergencies;
2.1.2.1. Adequacy Standards for Food Aid;
2.1.2.2. Cultural Acceptability of Food;
2.1.2.3. Community Participation;
2.1.2.4. Emergency Relief and Longer-Term Concerns;
2.1.2.5. Special Nutritional Needs of the Most Vulnerable Persons;
2.1.2.6. Use of Specialized Food Commodities;
2.1.2.7. Quality Control and Monitoring;
2.1.2.8. Food Rationing in the Post-Emergency Phase;
2.1.3. Food Distribution under National DM Policy and Plan;
2.1.4. Food Distribution under Assam DM Manual and Plan;
2.1.5. Right to Food & National Food Security Act, 2013;
2.1.6. Court’s Direction for Implementation of the NFS Act;
2.2. Importance of Public Health in Disaster Situations;
2.2.1. Concept of Right to Health under IHRL;
2.2.2. IASC Guidelines;
2.2.3. Sphere Standards;
2.2.4. UNHCR’s Essential Medicines and Medical Supplies Policy;
2.2.5. Right to Health Care in India;
2.2.6. National Health Mission;
2.2.6.1. Integrated Disease Surveillance Program;
2.2.6.2. Accredited Social Health Activist Program;
2.2.6.3. Village, Health, Sanitation and Nutrition Committee;
2.2.7. Tamil Nadu Public Health Act, 1939 and its Relevance to Disaster Situations;
2.2.8. Epidemic Act, 1897;
2.2.9. Public Health Bill, 2017;
2.2.10. National Health Policy 2017;
2.2.11. NDMA Guidelines on Medical Preparedness & Mass Casualty Management;
2.2.12. Assam DM Manual and Plan;
2.2.13. The Red Cross Movement;
2.3. Right to Sanitation in Disaster Situations;
2.3.1. A Conceptual Discourse;
2.3.2. Right to Sanitation under IHRL;
2.3.3. Reference to International Humanitarian Standards;
2.3.3.1. IASC Guidelines;
2.3.3.2. Sphere Standards;
2.3.3.3. UN Guiding Principles;
2.3.4. Poor Sanitation and its Impact on Public Health;
2.3.5. Constitutional Law Regime;
2.3.6. Role of the Judiciary;
2.3.7. Other Statutory Laws and Policy regime;
2.3.7.1. Swachh Bharat Mission;
2.3.7.2. Sanitation under State Legislation;
2.3.8. Sanitation under Legal regime relating to Disaster Management;
CHAPTER III: PROTECTION OF RIGHT TO ADEQUATE HOUSING WITH REFERENCE TO FORCED DISPLACEMENT;
3.1. Recognition of the Right under the International Law;
3.1.1. International Human Rights Treaties;
3.1.2. International Soft Law Instruments;
3.1.2.1. Habitat Declarations;
3.1.2.2. Rio Declaration;
3.1.2.3. UN Guiding Principles;
3.1.2.4. IASC Framework;
3.1.2.5. Pinheiro Principles;
3.1.2.6. UNHCR Handbook;
3.1.2.7. Humanitarian Standards;
3.1.2.8. Report of the Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing;
3.2. Types of Shelter/Housing in Disaster Situations;
3.3. Protection of Housing Rights under Indian Legal Regime;
3.3.1. National Housing Schemes and their Reference to Disasters;
3.3.1.1. Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana;
3.3.1.2. Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana–Gramin;
3.3.2. Disaster Management Act, 2005;
3.3.3. National Policy on Disaster Management;
3.3.4. National Disaster Management Plan;
3.3.5. National Disaster Management Guidelines;
3.3.5.1. National Guidelines on the Management of Floods;
3.3.5.2. National Guidelines on the Management of Earthquakes;
3.3.6. Assam State Disaster Management Framework;
3.3.6.1. Assam State Disaster Management Policy 2010;
3.3.6.2. Assam State Disaster Management Plan 2013;
3.3.6.3. Assam Disaster Management Manual 2015;
3.4. Protection of the Right in the Aftermath of Major Disasters: A Reality Check;
3.4.1. Anomaly & Discrimination in Receiving House Damage Compensation;
3.4.2. Poor Condition of Emergency Shelters;
3.4.3. Problems with Temporary Shelter;
3.4.4. Community Participation in Permanent Housing;
3.4.5. Public Awareness regarding Repairs and Strengthening;
3.4.6. Reconstruction Process resulting in Women Empowerment;
3.4.7. Involuntary Relocation/Eviction;
3.5. Insurance as Mitigation Strategy;
3.5.1. Problems with Insurance Policy in India;
3.5.2. Views of the Governmental Expert Committees;
3.5.3. Experiences in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu;
3.6. Role of the Judiciary;
3.6.1. Judgments from Indian Courts;
3.6.2. Reference to Foreign Courts’ Judgments;
3.7. Role of the National Human Rights Commission;
CHAPTER IV: PROTECTION OF RIGHT TO BASIC EDUCATION;
4.1. Impact of Disasters on Education;
4.2. Protection of the Right in the Aftermath of Disasters;
4.2.1. International Law Instruments;
4.2.2. Initiatives of State of Tamil Nadu in post-Tsunami Scenario;
4.2.3. Restoration of Education after the Uttarakhand Floods;
4.3. Importance of DRR in School Program;
4.3.1. Recognition of DRR within the UN Framework;
4.3.2. Training of Teachers;
4.3.3. Few Government Initiatives;
4.3.4. Scope of DRR within Disaster Management Legal Regime;
4.3.4.1. Assam State Disaster Management Manual;
4.4. Right to Education in a Safe Environment;
4.4.1. Importance of Safety Norms in School Buildings;
4.4.2. Safe Schools under RTE Act;
4.4.3. Emphasis on Safety Standards by the Judicial Authorities;
4.5. Liability in Cases of School Disasters;
4.5.1. Scope of Civil Liability: DAV School Fire case;
4.5.2. Criminal Liability in Kumbakonam School Fire case and Beyond;
CHAPTER V: DISASTER RISK REDUCTION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT;
5.1. Relationship between Disasters and Safe Environment;
5.2. Right to Adequate Environment under International Law;
5.3. DRR and Sustainable Development Goals;
5.4. Climate Change and DRR;
5.4.1. Linkages between Climate Change Adaptation and DRR;
5.5. Impact of Environmental Hazards on the Vulnerability of the Poor;
5.6. Environmental Protection sans Natural Disaster Management in India;
5.7. Unsustainable Development and Urban Flooding;
5.7.1. NDMA Guidelines on Management of Urban Flooding;
5.7.2. A Curious Case of Chennai Floods;
5.7.3. Legal Protection of the Waterbodies;
5.7.4. Rejuvenating Urban Sustainability: Concept of “Smart City”;
5.8. Unsustainable Development in the Himalayas and the Deluge;
5.8.1. Judicial Diktat: Let Developers’ Pay for Disaster Losses;
CHAPTER VI: ACCOUNTABILITY IN DISASTER GOVERNANCE FOR THE ROTECTION OF VICTIMS’ RIGHTS;
6.1. Relationship between Accountability and Victims’ Rights in Disaster Context;
6.2. Concept of Accountability in Disaster Governance;
6.2.1. Good Governance and its Impact on Accountability;
6.2.2. Importance of Accountability in Disaster Management;
6.3. Significance of the Issue;
6.3.1. The Continuing Saga of Unaccountability;
6.3.2. Normative Political Concepts of Disaster Managers;
6.3.3. Accountability of “Organizational Bystanders” ;
6.3.4. Politics of Disaster Management;
6.3.5. Accountability towards the Affected Community;
6.4. Accountability through RTI Act: The Bleak Future;
6.5. The Law Commission and Regulation of Private Organizations;
6.6. Accountability under the Disaster Management Law;
6.6.1. Accountability of the Disaster Management Authorities;
6.7. The Role of the National Human Rights Institutions;
6.8. Reparation of Victims and Role of the Judiciary;
6.8.1. Fixing Liability of the State: Reference to Foreign Court Cases;
6.8.2. Act of Negligence and Remedy under Indian Law;
CHAPTER VII: EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION OF VICTIMS’ RIGHTS IN THE USA;
7.1. Evolution of Emergency Management in the US;
7.1.1. Development in the 19th Century till 1950s;
7.1.2. Development in the Cold War Era;
7.1.3. Significant Legislative Development in Natural Disaster Management;
7.1.4. Creation of FEMA;
7.1.5. NRF and NIMS;
7.1.6. Role of the Department of Homeland Security;
7.1.7. State and Local Emergency Management Agencies;
7.1.8. Role of the Non-profit Voluntary Organizations;
7.1.9. Role of the Private Sector;
7.2. Appraisal of FEMA/DHS and its Leadership since Inception;
7.2.1. FEMA in pre-1993 era;
7.2.2. Witt Revolution (1993 – 2001) ;
7.2.3. FEMA under Bush Administration and Hurricane Katrina Fiasco;
7.2.4. FEMA’s altered stance under Obama regime;
7.3. Assistance to Victims under the Stafford Act and Related Legislative Framework;
7.3.1. Principle of non-discrimination;
7.3.2. Major Disaster and Emergency Assistance Programs;
7.3.2.1. Essential Assistance;
7.3.2.2. Hazard Mitigation Assistance;
7.3.2.3. Reconstruction, Restoration or Replacement of Facilities;
7.3.2.4. National Flood Insurance Program;
7.3.3. Individual Assistance Programs;
7.3.3.1. Individual and Household Assistance;
7.3.3.2. National Disaster Housing Strategy;
7.3.3.3. Arrangements for Feeding of Disaster Victims;
7.3.3.4. Unemployment Assistance;
7.3.3.5. Professional Services;
7.3.3.6. Case Management Services;
7.3.3.7. Appeals regarding Assistance Decisions;
7.4. Protection of the Rights of 2005 Hurricane Victims: An Assessment;
7.4.1. No Lessons learnt from “Hurricane Pam” ;
7.4.2. Protection of Right to Shelter/Housing;
7.4.3. Toxic FEMA Trailers and Victims’ Sufferings;
7.4.4. Permanent Housing – A Distant Dream;
7.4.5. Waste and Fraud in Housing Projects;
7.4.6. Internal displacement of the Hurricane Victims;
7.4.7. Public Health Crisis and Challenges;
7.4.8. Jim Crow Syndrome on Hurricane Victims;
7.5. Role of the Courts in Emergency Management;
7.5.1. Concept of Sovereign Immunity under the Stafford Act;
7.5.1.1. FEMA’s Actions are Immune from Judicial Review;
7.5.1.2. FEMA’s Actions Not Immune from Judicial Review;
7.5.2. Constitutional Claims Not Precluded from Judicial Review;
7.5.3. Tortious Liability of the Government;
7.5.4. Grant Programs Designed To Assist Individuals Rather the States;
7.5.5. Entitlement to Fair Market Rent;
7.5.6. Preparation of a Disaster Plan;
7.5.7. Existence of a Flawed Plan;
7.5.8. Poor Executive Decisions and Operational Errors;
7.6. Environmental Clean-Up and the Superfund;
7.7. US Emergency Management beyond Hurricane Katrina;
CHAPTER VIII: TOWARDS A RESILIENT FUTURE: SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS & SUGGESTIONS;
8.1. Summary of Conclusions;
8.2. Suggestions;
ANNEXURES;
APPENDICES;
BIBLIOGRAPHY.