India, the world’s most populous country, faces challenges from extreme weather events. Between 2019 and 2023, the nation incurred over $56 billion in damages due to climate-induced disasters. Two-thirds of the 82.1 million people affected in South Asia were from India. Reporting losses in disasters has proven inadequate, often leaving communities without compensation. To address this, the e-digital wallet Akshvi has been launched to empower affected individuals in reporting their losses.
What is Akshvi?
Akshvi stands for Aapda Kshati Vivaran, meaning Disaster Damages Description. It is a digital platform designed for self-reporting losses during disasters. Developed by SEEDS India, Akshvi enables communities to log economic and non-economic losses from various extreme weather events.
How Does Akshvi Work?
Each household receives an E-Disaster Wallet under Akshvi. They can report losses through an Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS), a WhatsApp chatbot, or assistance from volunteers. This user-friendly approach caters to all literacy levels, ensuring broad participation.
Importance of Accurate Data
The platform aims to provide credible records of losses, which are often untracked in rural India. This data helps government agencies tailor relief efforts and build resilience plans. During a pilot project, 98% of self-reported data was verified as accurate, challenging the notion of inflated claims.
Community Engagement
Akshvi prioritises community involvement in disaster recovery. It empowers families to self-report losses, ensuring their needs are addressed. This approach encourages trust and enhances the relationship between citizens and government agencies.
Future Goals
SEEDS India aims to onboard one million households onto the Akshvi platform within a year. The collected data will facilitate direct cash grants and link families to government welfare schemes. This initiative represents step towards building climate resilience in vulnerable communities.
Linking to Broader Initiatives
The E-Disaster Wallets are being integrated with long-term social welfare schemes and insurance programmes. Akshvi serves as a model for inclusive loss and damage assessments, advocating for bottom-up approaches in disaster management.
Challenges Ahead
While Akshvi shows promise, expanding its reach poses challenges. Engaging diverse communities and ensuring accurate data collection will be crucial for its success. Continuous advocacy for improved methodologies in loss assessment remains essential.
Questions for UPSC:
- Critically analyse the impact of climate change on socio-economic conditions in India.
- What are the major challenges in disaster management in developing countries? How can technology mitigate these challenges?
- Estimate the effectiveness of community-driven approaches in disaster relief and recovery efforts.
- Point out the role of government policies in enhancing climate resilience among vulnerable populations in India.
Answer Hints:
1. Critically analyse the impact of climate change on socio-economic conditions in India.
- Extreme weather events have led to economic losses, estimated at over $56 billion from 2019 to 2023.
- Two-thirds of the affected population in South Asia during this period were from India, denoting the widespread impact.
- Climate change exacerbates existing vulnerabilities, particularly among marginalized communities reliant on agriculture.
- The invisible emotional and cultural losses are equally , affecting community cohesion and mental health.
- Inadequate data reporting hampers effective response and recovery efforts, leaving many without compensation and support.
2. What are the major challenges in disaster management in developing countries? How can technology mitigate these challenges?
- Challenges include weak infrastructure, limited resources, and lack of accurate data for assessing losses and needs.
- Community engagement is often low due to inadequate communication and awareness about disaster preparedness.
- Technology, like the Akshvi e-wallet, can facilitate self-reporting of losses, ensuring accurate and timely data collection.
- Digital platforms can enhance communication between citizens and government agencies, improving response coordination.
- Innovative solutions such as mobile apps and IVRS can reach illiterate populations, ensuring inclusivity in disaster management.
3. Estimate the effectiveness of community-driven approaches in disaster relief and recovery efforts.
- Community-driven approaches empower individuals to report losses accurately, leading to 98% verification of self-reported data.
- Such methods encourage trust between communities and government agencies, enhancing cooperation in recovery efforts.
- Engaging local populations ensures that relief efforts are tailored to specific needs, increasing their effectiveness.
- Community involvement can improve the speed of recovery by mobilizing local resources and knowledge.
- These approaches build resilience by involving marginalized groups in planning and decision-making processes.
4. Point out the role of government policies in enhancing climate resilience among vulnerable populations in India.
- Government policies can provide a framework for integrating disaster risk reduction into development planning.
- Policies that promote data collection and sharing improve understanding of climate impacts on vulnerable communities.
- Incentives for adopting sustainable practices can help build resilience among farmers and low-income households.
- Linking disaster relief initiatives with long-term social welfare schemes ensures continued support for affected populations.
- Effective policies should prioritize marginalized communities, ensuring their voices are included in climate adaptation strategies.
