ARE WOMEN MORE VULNERABLE IN DISASTERS?

 by

KIRAN SONI GUPTA

           "When a natural disaster strikes, women are more vulnerable to its strains - because of traditional social, economic and cultural roles, which marginalise and discriminate against them. "

Sriganganagar district, the granary and one of the most fertile areas of Rajasthan,   served by three canals  - Gang Canal, Bhakhra Canal and Indira Gandhi Canal, - saw in me the first lady District Collector & District Magistrate in the 55 years of independence. Though expected to pull the weight as an equal to many of my worthy predecessors, the challenges faced were far greater than those faced by men. Women often have to make an extra effort to make a mark and to gain the same respect that seems to come more easily  to men. When I arrived in Sri Ganganagar, I thought it was going to be a breeze, but it was a lot harder there encountering both natural and man made disasters - breaches in canal, fire in ammunition depot, drought. floods, relief works for earthquake victims, war like situation at the border and the worsening law and order situation following the murder of a labour leader Darshan Koda and a young boy Amit Arora's death in police custody.

The experience of managing varied natural and man-made disasters in Sriganganagar district gave me a deep insight into the male and female responses to disaster management. The gender analysis of the study of disasters, and the strength and vulnerability of women in disaster response raises a range of issues that face women  - both as victims of disasters and as participants of disaster management.

  Disasters work like the magnifying glass of a society. They magnify what is good and what needs sincere help. Disasters do not affect everyone equally. What you are and what you do, determines your fate. The strong and the weak  stand out. This is true for the gender issues as much as for other issues.

  Most of us are familiar with the media images of mothers with children standing amidst the wreckage of floods, cyclones, earthquakes and other major disasters. These pictures reinforce a common stereo-type image of women and disasters; that women are first and foremost victims. They are vulnerable poor, marginalised and lack influence. But this is only one half of the picture. Women also have an important positive role in communities. They are the ones who feed and care for the family and society members. They contribute financially (whether through formal or informal sectors). They are also an important force in community voluntary groups if involved in disaster management.

  Piperane village near Suratgarh, which lies 85 Kms. from Sriganganagar on the Sriganganagar - Bikaner national highway,  witnessed a fire in the army ammunition depot on 25^th May, 2001, which triggered horror, shock and sprinkling of ammunition remains over an area of 20 kms. On receiving the information from the army officials, the relief and the rescue works became the top priority for the day. Soon after the detonation began , instant instructions were issued to cut-off electricity, rail services, transport services and to reduce the flow of water in canals and finally, the most important,  to evacuate the 7 villages in close proximity of the depot.  After giving the instructions for the rescue operations,  accompanied by the Superintendent of Police, I reached Pierane, which had by now turned into  a camping ground for army officials, civil administration, media and public. The 'Babe Ka Dhaba' was soon an improvised office. The temporary telephone connection seemed to be the only link with the outside world. The string of blasting sounds did not seem to wane off until late hours of the evening. It was not until the next morning that the senior army officials escorted me into the depot. The remnants of ammunition and its deep impact, the brunt of which was borne by the buildings, were all around me - a synged jeep of the Electricity Department,  the mollified high tension wires,  writhing cattle, and burnt houses.  

IThe younger boys were soon recruited for relief works while the women were seen preparing the food in three Dharamshalas of Suratgarh, which were converted into temporary shelters for the evacuees. It was an all-male affair, the emergency police service, fire brigade, salvation armies including the bomb disposal squads consisting of entirely men.  Women perceive disaster events more seriously because of their relative lack of power and control in society. In the emergency response behaviour, men adopted the rescue the community attitude while women were less involved. Women provided food while man 'managed' the provision of relief supplies.

  Sriganganagar, sharing 210 Kms. of international border with Pakistan has been in sharp focus as a result of the ongoing Indo-Pak tension and deployment of army following the major attack on Indian Parliament on December 13, 2001. The widespread laying of mines in border villages threw a large chunk of population outside their agricultural activities. Many of them who trudged to the fields either to water the field or reap the golden harvest, found themselves bereft of their legs/limbs due to mine blasts. Sporadic cases of women abuse and misbehaviour also came to light. It was obvious that it was not easy, especially for women, to leave their home,  livestock and their meagre possessions  - it  would either be washed away or stolen in their absence. Social seclusion is another factor of vulnerability. The avoidance relationship of 'Sasur-Bahu', 'Devar-Bhabhi' forbids women to leave their homes in the absence of their husbands,  who maybe out at work when disaster happens. Moreover, struck by the fear of starting from a scratch again, women are most vulnerable group in the post disaster phase. 

Though the evacuation plan of nearly 400,000 people spread over 500 villages lying in the range of 20 Kms. from border was well prepared, yet situational fears had prompted people to leave their women, children and costly possessions in the safer areas. Because of the unequal distribution of food in many families, women get 20% less calories then men. Malnutrition and poor health add to the physical weakness of women in general. The literacy rate is lower and unemployment is twice that of men. The rising unemployment amongst the rural folk, the dwindling livestock and fodder stock, risk exposure to mines, prompted the district administration to open 'chara depots', organise community 'langars' at pivotal points and to provide minimum relief to the blast victims, which had precipitated the sufferings of the family. A large number of employment works were also opened up under the various rural development schemes as SGSY, BADP, MPLAD and MLAD, etc. To truly understand how the households responded to the war like situation, we need to understand the pattern of domestic labour and decision making. Women as mothers, partners, daughters, grand-mothers, sisters and aunts, tend to do most of the house-hold and care giving work. An unequal division of domestic responsibility persisted. The bottom line was that while women play a crucial public and private role, their voice has been unheard in organisational and community policy making including decisions and disaster response recovery.

  I vividly remember the morning of 26^th January, 2001, which set in the trail of sufferings for many in Gujarat. The clock was ticking towards 9.00 A.M. when I was scheduled to take the salute for the Republic Day Celebrations. Minutes before, I was conversing with my spouse in Jaipur when we simultaneously experienced the tremors. Very soon we learnt that these few seconds had badly shaken most parts of Gujarat, particularly Bhuj area. The relief work commenced immediately. The spontaneous out-pourings of people of Sriganganagar to the tune of one and a half crores was impressive enough. However, my other half left for Bhuj the same evening as a part of U.N. Disaster Management Team and continued the unending work for the next few months of relief and rehabilitation. To share some of his observations - after the earthquake, women in the disaster zone put all the skill and will into helping survivors and protecting their families. Evacuee women showed exceptional strength, firmness and grit. They survived by becoming active in their own rehabilitation. They organised schooling for children, responded to the community needs as best as they could and worked whenever possible.  Many women said that working helped them to forget about loss of their relatives; it kept them from falling into despair. Special search teams of women and girls were at work to locate the displaced people. It was to the credit of women that 70% of the ill, wounded, children, old people and those in hospitals were found by their relatives. The settlement of orphaned children and re-construction of quake-proof houses were parts of responsive management of post earthquake problems. Other problems related to women's domestic role as managers of food and water. There were complaints of poor quality of relief grain, lack of drinking water and fresh vegetables and the difficulties and the cost of cooking too. The use of buckets rather than the water pots made water more liable to contamination and delivery of water by tankers was also not well organised .

  The study of many types of disasters over a long period of time has shown different  behavioural responses  of men and women.  However,  women's views and contributions are rarely given full recognition. For example, in the post impact period, most women are left to perform the traditional and under valued tasks such as child care, food preparation and domestic work, while men are more likely to leave the women to participate in more visible and highly publicised relief efforts. Women are seen as a vulnerable group, less likely to participate in planning,  and unable to cope in the wake of disaster. The traditional view of women as victims, leaves men to make decisions about their roles and needs and over ooks the vital work and unique perspective that women can bring to disaster management.

The changing nature of family also affects the emergency responsibilities. The disappearance of joint and extended families, urban migration, separation of working couples and the growing number of single parents raises new issues in disaster management. What happens to children when single parent is needed for an emergency ? What happens to children when both parents have emergency responsibilities ? What are the child care arrangements during disasters ? Since the bulk of initial search, rescue and transport to hospital, is done by the survivors, the departure of men hinders the initial female response.  The longer life spans of women also indicate that elderly women may outnumber men and often live on their own. The aged may be reluctant to move out at shorter notice and the prospect of an approaching disaster can be very daunting.

There is a need to consciously enlist women in disaster preparedness and to train them to cope with its ensuing physical and mental stress. They also need to be given  leadership training to improve their awareness and involvement in local hazards.  Generating new attitudes towards women's role can go a long way in managing disasters given the natural resilience of most women.

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