SC issued Notice to Uttarakhand for Failure in Implementing Disaster Management Act

The Supreme Court of India on 19 July 2013 issued notice to Uttarakhand and six other states for their alleged failure in implementing Disaster Management Act in order to handle natural catastrophe. A bench headed by Justice A K Patnaik sought response from the Union government, the states and the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar Islands on a PIL alleging that governments have failed to implement in true spirit the Act which was passed in 2005.

The six other states which have been issued notice are Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal and Gujarat.

What is Disaster Management Act?
 It is an Act to provide for the effective management of disasters and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. It was enacted by Parliament of India in the Fifty-sixth Year of the Republic of India (2005). The major points related to Disaster Management Act are as following:

• This Act is called the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
• It extends to the whole of India.
• It shall come into force on such date as the Union Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette appoint; and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act and for different States, and any reference to commencement in any provision of this Act in relation to any State shall be construed as a reference to the commencement of that provision in that State.