THE PRINCIPAL The Principal is responsible for the overall coordination, develop ment, and dissemination of the Disaster

Emergency Plan. Duties shall include: 1. Carrying out the directives of the Superintendent and keeping him / her appri sed of emergency situations. 2. Coordinating the evacuation by use of radios or other means and monitoring pr ogress. 3. Remaining in constant contact with Rangeley Emergency Management Services and the Superintendent. 4. Meeting with the bus drivers to inform them of their duties and responsibilit ies.

INTRODUCTION: India has been traditionally vulnerable to natural disasterson account of its un ique geo-climatic conditions. Floods,droughts, cyclones, earthquakes and landslides have been recurrent phenomena. At the global level, there has beenconsiderable concern ove r natural disasters. Even assubstantial scientific and material progress is made, the loss of lives and property due to disasters has not decreased.Over the past couple of years, t he Government of India has brought about a paradigm shift in the approach to disast er management. The new approach proceeds from theconviction that development cannot be sustainable unlessdisaster mitigation is built into the development process.This project discusses the roles that government andvarious agencies that play an important r ole in managingdisasters. We too as citizens of India can play a major role.We can also be a volunteer and also a skilled personnel andsave lives of our near and dear countr y men/women in anydisaster scenario. At the time of disaster various agencies bothe governm ent and non - government organizations playa crucial role in preparing the society. Home Guards, CivilDefence, Volunteers of national Service Scheme,NehruYuva Kendra Sangathan t oo play a major role at the time of crisis. This chapter tries to understand the functions androle of these agencies in disaster management, who makethe society a better place to lives. INSTITUTION AND POLICY MECHANISM:The institutional and policy mechanisms for carrying outresponse, relief and reh abilitation have been well-established since Independence. These mechanisms have proved to be robust and effective insofar as response, relief and rehabilitation are concerned. Howe ver, the increasingfrequency and ferocity, the rising extent and sweep as wellas the mounting human and economic toll has

necessitateda reappraisal and re-orientation of existing institutional and policy frameworks along with creation of newer fr ameworks for holistic disaster management. Thechanged policy/approach mandates a priority to pre-disaster aspects of mitiga tion, prevention and preparedness and newinstitutional mechanisms are being put in place to addressthe policy change. Although, the primary responsibility for disaster management is of the concerned Stategovernments, the Central Government plays a key role by providing financial and logistic support in case of major disasters and co-ordinate the effort of all Ce ntralMinistries/Departments/Organizations. At the apex level,the Cabinet Committee on Drought Management has beenre-constitut ed and converted into a Cabinet Committee on Natural Calamities. The scope of the Committee has beenenlarged so as to address mitigation and preparednessmeasures also