Social Welfare Administration II: Policies, Programmes and Institutions for SCs, STs, OBCs, Women, Children, the Aged, Persons with Disabilities and Minorities; the National Commissions; Disaster Management — Types, Institutions and the Role of State and Non-State Actors
2. The national commissions: role and functions
| Commission | Basis | Role and functions |
|---|---|---|
| National Commission for Scheduled Castes | Constitutional — Article 338; separated from the tribes commission by the 89th Amendment (2003) | Investigates and monitors safeguards for SCs; inquires into specific complaints of deprivation of rights; advises on planning; reports to the President; has the powers of a civil court when investigating |
| National Commission for Scheduled Tribes | Constitutional — Article 338A, inserted by the 89th Amendment (2003) | Same functions for STs, with added attention to forest rights, displacement and rehabilitation |
| National Commission for Backward Classes | Statutory from 1993 (after Indra Sawhney); constitutional from the 102nd Amendment (2018) — Article 338B | Investigates safeguards and complaints of OBCs and advises on their socio-economic development |
| National Commission for Women | Statutory — National Commission for Women Act, 1990; set up in January 1992 | Reviews constitutional and legal safeguards for women, recommends remedial legislation, looks into complaints and takes suo motu notice of deprivation of women's rights, and advises on policy |
| National Commission for Minorities | Statutory — National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 (an earlier executive commission dated from 1978) | Evaluates the progress of minorities, monitors constitutional and legal safeguards, looks into complaints; six communities are notified as minorities — Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis and (since 2014) Jains |
| National Commission for Protection of Child Rights | Statutory — Commissions for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005; set up in 2007 | Monitors child-rights safeguards and the implementation of the POCSO and right-to-education laws |
The commissions share a common administrative character: they are recommendatory, not executive — they investigate, monitor, hear complaints with the powers of a civil court, and report, but cannot themselves enforce; their effectiveness depends on the government's response to their reports, on their independence in appointments, and on their resources. The constitutional commissions' reports must be laid before Parliament with a memorandum explaining the action taken on them, which gives them more weight than the statutory ones.
3. Disaster management: nature and types of disaster
A hazard is a potentially damaging event or process — an earthquake, a cyclone, a chemical leak; a disaster occurs when a hazard strikes a vulnerable community whose capacity to cope is overwhelmed, causing serious loss of life, property or livelihoods. Disaster risk is therefore commonly expressed as Risk = Hazard × Vulnerability ÷ Capacity: the same cyclone is a catastrophe for a poor coastal village without shelters and an inconvenience for a prepared city. The Disaster Management Act, 2005 defines a disaster as a catastrophe, mishap, calamity or grave occurrence arising from natural or man-made causes, or by accident or negligence, beyond the coping capacity of the affected community.
| Type | Examples |
|---|---|
| Geological | Earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, volcanic eruptions |
| Hydro-meteorological and climatic | Floods, cyclones, droughts, cloudbursts, heat waves, cold waves, avalanches |
| Biological | Epidemics and pandemics, pest attacks, cattle epidemics |
| Man-made (technological and industrial) | Chemical and industrial accidents (the Bhopal gas leak, 1984), nuclear and radiological emergencies, fires, building collapses, major transport accidents |
The disaster management cycle runs through mitigation and prevention (reducing hazard and vulnerability — building codes, land-use zoning, embankments), preparedness (plans, early warning, drills, stockpiles), response (rescue, relief, medical aid) and recovery (rehabilitation and reconstruction, ideally "building back better"). India's approach shifted after the Odisha super cyclone (1999), the Gujarat earthquake (2001) and the Indian Ocean tsunami (2004) from a relief-centric approach, run by relief commissioners under the old famine codes, to a holistic, pre-emptive approach centred on risk reduction. Internationally, the Hyogo Framework for Action (2005–15) was succeeded by the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–30), with four priorities — understanding risk, strengthening risk governance, investing in resilience, and enhancing preparedness and "build back better".
4. Institutional arrangements for disaster management
The Disaster Management Act, 2005 created a three-tier structure of authorities. The Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal ministry for most disasters (drought remains with the Ministry of Agriculture, and epidemics with the Ministry of Health). The Act was amended by the Disaster Management (Amendment) Act, 2025, which, among other changes, gave statutory backing to the National Crisis Management Committee and the High-Level Committee, and provided for Urban Disaster Management Authorities for state capitals and large cities with municipal corporations.
| Body | Head | Role |
|---|---|---|
| National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) | The Prime Minister | Lays down policies, plans and guidelines; approves the National Plan |
| National Executive Committee | The Union Home Secretary | Coordinates and monitors implementation at the national level |
| State Disaster Management Authority | The Chief Minister | State policy and plan |
| District Disaster Management Authority | The Collector / District Magistrate, with the elected head of the local authority as co-chairperson | District plan; coordination of response on the ground |
| National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) | A Director-General | Specialist response battalions drawn from the central armed police forces |
| National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) | — | Training, research and capacity building |
Finance is provided through the National Disaster Response Fund and the State Disaster Response Funds for relief, with mitigation funds at both levels following the Fifteenth Finance Commission's recommendations. The National Policy on Disaster Management (2009) and the National Disaster Management Plan (first in 2016, revised in 2019 and aligned with the Sendai Framework) set out roles for every ministry. State governments raise their own State Disaster Response Forces, and the armed forces are called in aid of civil authority in major disasters.
5. The role of state and non-state actors
- The state: legislation and policy, early warning (the India Meteorological Department's cyclone warnings; the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services for tsunamis), evacuation, rescue and relief, compensation, reconstruction and the enforcement of building and land-use codes.
- Local governments: panchayats and municipalities are closest to the affected community and are the first line of preparedness and response.
- Communities: community-based disaster risk reduction, local knowledge and trained volunteers — the Aapda Mitra scheme trains community volunteers in flood-prone and other districts; the first hours after a disaster are almost always met by neighbours.
- NGOs and civil society: relief distribution, shelter, psycho-social care, and advocacy for the vulnerable in rehabilitation; international humanitarian standards such as the Sphere minimum standards guide their work.
- The private sector and media: business continuity, logistics, CSR funds for relief and reconstruction; the media spread warnings and information but can also spread rumour.
Key takeaways
- Protective laws include the PoA Act 1989, PESA 1996, the Forest Rights Act 2006, the Domestic Violence Act 2005, the POSH Act 2013, POCSO 2012, the Senior Citizens Act 2007 and the RPwD Act 2016 (21 disabilities, 4 per cent reservation).
- The SC (Article 338), ST (338A, 2003) and Backward Classes (338B, 2018) commissions are constitutional; the Women (1990 Act), Minorities (1992 Act) and Child Rights (2005 Act) commissions are statutory.
- All the commissions are recommendatory: they investigate with civil-court powers and report but cannot enforce.
- Risk = hazard × vulnerability ÷ capacity; India moved from relief to risk reduction after 1999–2004, and the Sendai Framework (2015–30) replaced Hyogo.
- The Disaster Management Act, 2005 created the NDMA (PM), SDMAs (CM), DDMAs (Collector), the NDRF and NIDM; the 2025 amendment gave statutory backing to the NCMC and High-Level Committee and provided for urban authorities.
Practice questions (10)
Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.
The National Disaster Management Authority is chaired by:
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Answer: C — The Prime Minister
The Prime Minister chairs the NDMA. The Union Home Secretary chairs the National Executive Committee; the Cabinet Secretary chairs the National Crisis Management Committee.Which national commission became constitutional through the 102nd Amendment (2018)?
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Answer: B — The National Commission for Backward Classes
The 102nd Amendment inserted Article 338B for the NCBC. The ST commission became separate and constitutional under Article 338A through the 89th Amendment (2003); the Women and Minorities commissions remain statutory.How many specified disabilities does the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 recognise? Type a number.
Numerical answer — type the value.
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Answer: 21
The 2016 Act recognises twenty-one disabilities, up from seven under the 1995 Act, and raises reservation in government posts from three to four per cent.Which of the following commissions are statutory rather than constitutional bodies? Select all that apply.
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Answer: A — National Commission for Minorities; B — National Commission for Protection of Child Rights; D — National Commission for Women
The Women (1990 Act), Minorities (1992 Act) and Child Rights (2005 Act) commissions are statutory. The Scheduled Castes commission rests on Article 338 of the Constitution.Assertion (A): The same cyclone can be a disaster for one community and a manageable event for another. Reason (R): Disaster risk depends on vulnerability and coping capacity, not only on the hazard. Choose the correct option.
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Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
Both are true and R explains A: a hazard becomes a disaster only where vulnerability is high and capacity low, so preparedness, shelters and warning can turn the same hazard into a manageable event.The District Disaster Management Authority under the 2005 Act is chaired by:
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Answer: A — The Collector or District Magistrate
The Collector chairs the DDMA, with the elected head of the local authority as co-chairperson. The Chief Minister chairs the State authority.Which of the following are priorities of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030)? Select all that apply.
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Answer: A — Understanding disaster risk; B — Enhancing preparedness and "build back better"; D — Strengthening disaster risk governance
Sendai's four priorities are understanding risk, strengthening risk governance, investing in resilience, and enhancing preparedness with "build back better". It strengthens national responsibility rather than replacing it.The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013 gave statutory form to guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in:
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Answer: D — Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997)
The Vishaka guidelines of 1997 governed workplace sexual harassment until the 2013 Act. The other cases concern reservation, police reform and the CBI and CVC respectively.The Integrated Child Development Services scheme, delivered through anganwadi centres, was launched in:
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Answer: D — 1975
ICDS began in 1975. The National Social Assistance Programme dates from 1995, the Domestic Violence Act from 2005 and Beti Bachao Beti Padhao from 2015.Which communities are notified as minorities at the national level under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992?
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Answer: C — Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis and Jains
Five communities were notified in 1993, and Jains were added in 2014, making six. The last option describes the position before 2014.