Disaster Management : Optimising the Global Military Response

By Maj Gen Amardeep Bhardwaj PhD

In this seminal work, Major General Amardeep Bhardwaj, PhD - a soldier-scholar of global eminence - brilliantly combines his professional experience of 40 years in the military – including Disaster/Emergency operations, planning, policy and advocacy - with over 10 years of focussed research in the subject to present a masterpiece that oozes with creativity and innovative-thinking.
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As the unrelenting scourges of climate change, global warming, unsustainable growth and crass commercialisation - at the cost of environmental degradation - tighten their vice-like grip on planet Earth, disasters are occurring with increasing frequency and ferocity. How far are you from the next flood, earthquake, tsunami, fire, gas leak or radiation hazard?
Throughout history, soldiers, sailors and airmen around the world have been at the forefront in responding to disasters; saving lives, bringing succour and dispending aid. Yet, the hidden truth is that militaries are not optimally trained, equipped, organised or mandated to undertake such specialised humanitarian tasks. There is huge scope for them to accrue much higher ‘peace-dividends’ in serving humanity.
Exhibiting true ‘Thought Leadership’, this scholarly treatise offers an array of exciting new perspectives to optimise the world’s militaries for higher efficiencies in disaster response, thus narrowing the worrying gap in mankind’s coping capabilities. A must for all those involved in disaster operations across the globe; especially the military, para-military, civil-defence, police and other emergency services; it offers valuable insights for policy-makers, practitioners, students and stakeholders.
Futuristic, provocative and insightful, this rare book has global appeal and world-wide relevance. Brilliantly researched, convincingly argued and lucidly presented, it makes compelling reading. You simply cannot put it away, the book will jump right back at you and demand action – NOW!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing India
• Release date: Jan 27, 2022
• ISBN: 9781543708240

Book preview

Copyright © 2022 Maj Gen Amardeep Bhardwaj, PhD. All rights reserved.

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ISBN

ISBN: 978-1-5437-0825-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5437-0824-0 (e)

01/26/2022

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CONTENTS

Author’s Note

Acronyms And Abbreviations

Chapter 1 Disaster Trends And Future Projections

Chapter 2 Why The Military Must Get More Involved

Chapter 3 Optimising Roles And Tasks

Chapter 4 Optimising Education And Training

Chapter 5 Optimising Organisational Structures

Chapter 6 Optimising Equipment, Leveraging Technology

Chapter 7 Learning From Each Other And The Experts

Part 1: Country Samples

Part 2: The United Nations ‘International Humanitarian Military Coordination Structure’

Part 3: Important Learning Points For All Militaries

Conclusion

References

Bibliography

AUTHOR’S NOTE

1. This book is born out of my deep inner commitment to serve the cause of my brethren, across the globe, afflicted by disasters. I dedicate this ‘labour of love’, with compassion and humility, to them. If this work can contribute even in the smallest measure, directly or indirectly, towards assuaging their suffering - now or in the future - I shall consider my mission to have been accomplished.

2. Starting from an in-depth study in to the Disaster Management (DM) mechanism in India, way back in 2008, my quest for deeper insight in to the subject led me to study similar mechanisms of a number of countries. These studies, combined with my four-decade long career in the military, coalesced to eventually focus on a niche area that - except for a few academic forays - has not witnessed much scrutiny; the role of the world’s militaries in DM. Further enquiry brought forth an amazing realisation: the challenges faced by most militaries in executing their mandated DM tasks - chiefly Disaster Response (DR) – are surprisingly similar, if not nearly identical. This similarity cuts across multiple boundary lines; national, political, geographic, economic, climatic, ecological, cultural, social et al. As I searched for ‘possible solutions’ to these myriad challenges, another major realisation dawned: a majority of the solutions too, were universally applicable and relevant to most militaries, irrespective of nationality. The idea of a global military response to disasters had been born.

3. It has been my foremost endeavour to make sure that this consistent undercurrent of global relevance and appeal is preserved throughout the book. It could not have been any other way. So similar are the fault-lines and dissonances that show up, that they appear to have been inter-woven with an invisible thread across the global fabric. Correspondingly, the correctives that need to be applied, too, have universal applicability, notwithstanding a bit of tweaking here and there. For the most part, what is true of one military-in terms of executing its disaster response role-generally holds good for another and remains equally pertinent. Such is the global-commonness or universality of the role of the defence forces in DM and the factors that impinge on them!

4. Possibly, one reason for this global similarity is that disasters – natural, man-made or hybrid – have not the slightest regard for boundaries drawn by man. On the other hand, mankind’s response to them has, almost always, been sub-optimal. It remains fractured and divided by borders, demographics, economics, governmental policies and procedures, institutional limitations and differing perceptions. Yet, it is not altogether impossible to imagine a world in which nations come together - willingly, pro-actively and voluntarily - to assist each-other during disasters and their armed forces, instead of limiting themselves merely to war fighting, contribute to alleviate each other’s suffering. Fanciful dreams, one might say, but not outside the realm of possibility. In fact, this is the way to go if we are to put up a stronger fight against disasters. Laudably, a handful of nations are already doing so, setting an excellent example for others to follow.

5. As the unrelenting scourges of climate change, global warming, unsustainable development and crass commercialisation – at the expense of environmental degradation - tighten their vice-like grip on planet earth, disasters are occurring with increasing frequency and ferocity, afflicting more and more people. As unchecked human greed overreaches itself in disturbing mother nature’s fine balance and plays mayhem with our air, sea, land and space environments, an increasing number of human settlements are now feeling the direct impact of earth’s ruthless exploitation. So much so that today the common man in every part of the world – the ‘global citizen’ so to say – is now worried, anxious and apprehensive of ‘how far’ he or she is from the next disaster. The future portents are both obvious and ominous.

6. If that be the writing on the wall, the challenge before mankind is how to arrest the widening gap between ‘coping capabilities’ required and those available? It is here that the military, the most powerful tool in mankind’s toolkit to face up to disasters, has a pivotal role to play since no other agency can match its multi-dimensional capability. Militaries around the globe have little choice but to expand their role and enhance their participation in DM, chiefly in DR. The option is to do so individually, in a stand-alone manner, or synergistically. They can choose to adapt themselves to the new calling, either grudgingly and reluctantly, or enthusiastically and energetically. Since the impediments that constrain them from performing optimally during DR operations are, more or less, similar and the solutions to these problems, too, are near-identical, it stands to reason that these trans-national synergies are generated and optimised so as to forge a vastly superior ‘global disaster response’ by the world’s militaries. Such a response, if used prudently to complement and bolster the civil response, may well be the ‘force multiplier’ that we all so desperately need in bridging the ‘capability gap’.

7. Even the Armed Forces themselves have begun to realise that, notwithstanding all the other stakeholders in the field of DM, in the event of a large-scale disaster strike, they will invariably be called-in to assist in the national effort. Therefore, prudence demands that they take this specialised task more seriously and perform it to the best of their ability in the service of the nation. Since efficiency is central to the work-ethic of every military, it follows that this vital humanitarian duty must be rendered with the highest degree of effectiveness, resilience, speed and skill at its disposal. It is therefore, pertinent for every military to ask itself if it is indeed optimised for such a role? If not, it must endeavour for such optimisation through a future-capable employment philosophy as well as better training, equipping, and organisational restructuring for its envisaged role in disaster operations.

8. The problem that comes up here is that most militaries, being optimised for their Primary Role of ‘war-fighting’, do not possess the specialised skills, equipment and expertise required for effective DM. In other words, although they do manage to ‘get the job done’ with whatever they have, their performance - when analysed objectively and professionally - is invariably sub-optimal. What, then, must be done? It’s a thin line to tread; if you optimise the military (or a portion of it) for DM - one of its ‘Secondary Roles’ - you end up diluting its efficiency for its Primary Role of war-fighting, and vice-versa. On the other hand, it is unacceptable for this huge national resource to simply ‘sit out’ a disaster situation as a bystander. In which direction, therefore, should one steer?

9. This book endeavours to provide logical, practical and ‘implementable’ – as opposed to pedantic and purely theoretical – answers to these complex problems. It attempts to place in the hands of the policy makers, field workers, stakeholders and experts in the field of DM, world-wide, a well-researched and rationally argued document that provides a clear sense of the direction in which to steer. While compiling the book, I have – all along – been acutely aware of the need to make practical sense, be simple, straight-forward and convincing rather than overly pedantic or pedagogic. I may please be pardoned in case I have been somewhat blunt, over-critical or unsparing in my criticism at times. On my part, I can say without hesitation that I stand honestly by my convictions as a soldier-scholar, based on true integrity. To that end, I have tried to ensure that the ‘suggestions and recommendations’ arrived at after each bit of examination and analysis, are logically derived, balanced, unbiased, mature, practicable and futuristic. More so, they have global relevance and world-wide applicability.

10. As mankind evolves better strategies and more potent responses to disasters, the fight against them assumes sharper focus and newer dimensions. Yet, it is an unequal fight – man against nature and man against his own greed. Nonetheless, it is a fight worth dedicating one’s life to since our very survival as a human race is potentially at stake. Moreover, as a military man I have experienced time and again that ‘when the going gets tough, the tough gets going’; it is therefore my firm belief that this fight is winnable. While disasters cannot be altogether prevented, their damaging effects on human populations and the environment can indeed be minimised. In this noble endeavour - to shield fellow humans from disasters - the militaries of the world have always stood steadfast and rendered yeoman service to their nations. I salute them for their selfless service, as indeed I salute all other ‘emergency management’ forces, institutions and agencies across the globe for their noble contribution to this global humanitarian cause. It is my cherished dream that they will optimise themselves for a more efficient disaster response and join hands to forge the strongest weapon that mankind can possibly confront a disaster with. I urge all stakeholders in the DM domain, especially the ‘uniformed’ men and women of all countries to look beyond their borders, to synergise with each other and work connectedly to realise this cherished dream for our common good, for the good of future generations and for preservation of the purity of mother earth’s air, water, land and space.

Vijayi Bhav ! May We Be Victorious!         20220126_211609.psd

Amardeep Bhardwaj, PhD

Major General (Retired)

Website : https://gr8-ideas.com

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

CHAPTER 1

DISASTER TRENDS AND FUTURE PROJECTIONS

An Objective ‘Disaster Assessment’ of Planet Earth: Overview of the Best Available Contemporary Research

1. The best way to get a clear idea of the frequency, scale and intensity of disasters - recent as well as past - and imminence of future ones, is to take stock of the most authentic research coming out of think-tanks and professional institutions across the globe. One of the most credible amongst these is the ‘Sixth Assessment Report’ of the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), titled Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Finalized as recently as 6 August 2021 during the 14th Session of Working Group-I and 54th Session of the IPCC, the assessment covers extensive scientific literature and brings together the latest advances in climate science, combining multiple lines of evidence from paleoclimate, observations, process understanding, and global / regional climate simulations. The report claims to be "the most up-to-date physical understanding of the climate system and climate change".¹ Since climate change is a prime driver of disasters, the report is of direct significance to this book, particularly Parts A and B of the ‘Summary for Policymakers’. Relevant ‘findings’ of the same are quoted below (emphasis is mine):

A. The Current State of the Climate.

B. Possible Climate Futures

2. Other findings of the main Sixth IPCC Assessment Report, which give us a deeper understanding of current and future disaster trends, are succinctly explained hereunder in simple terms:

(a) The likelihood of occurrence of disasters, also termed as ‘Compound Extreme Events’ by scientists, has increased since the 1950s. This includes increases in the frequency of concurrent heatwaves, droughts on the global scale, fire weather in some regions of all inhabited continents, and compound flooding in some locations.

(b) As a result of continued global warming, every region in the world is likely to increasingly experience multiple and concurrent changes in the underlying factors which govern the climate. These changes become progressively more widespread and/or pronounced as the planet warms beyond 1.5°C.

(c) "More ‘Climatic Impact-Drivers’ (CIDs) across more regions are projected to change at 2°C and above compared to 1.5°C global warming. Region-specific changes include intensification of tropical cyclones and/or extratropical storms, increases in river floods, reductions in mean precipitation, increases in aridity and increases in fire weather. ----- potential future changes in other CIDs (include) hail, ice storms, severe storms, dust storms, heavy snowfall and landslides". ³

(d) In 2019, atmospheric concentration of CO2 was higher than it ever was in the last 2 million years, while concentrations of CH4 and N2O were at their highest in the least 800,000 years.

(e) The pH level of the ocean surface in recent decades is unusual in the last 2 million years.

(f) Human influence has warmed the climate at a rate that is unprecedented in, at least, the last 2000 years.

(g) The earth’s surface temperature has increased faster in the last 50 years (1970 to 2020) than in any other 50-year period in the last 2000 years.

(h) Global mean sea level has risen faster in the last century (1900 – 2000) than it did in any century in at least the last 3000 years. Thanks largely to human influence, the level increased by a whopping 0.20 merely between 1901 and 2018. This is on account of heating of the climate system which, in turn, causes ice loss on land and thermal expansion from ocean warming. Thermal expansion explained 50% of sea level rise during 1971–2018, while ice loss from glaciers accounted for 22%, ice sheets 20% and changes in land water storage 8%.

(i) The average Arctic Sea ice area, measured annually, reached its lowest level since at least 1850 in the period 2011–2020. In late summer, this area was smaller than it ever was in at least the past 1000 years. This includes the decrease in Northern Hemisphere spring snow cover since 1950 and surface melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Human influence appears to be the main reason behind this. The Arctic is likely to be practically sea ice free in the month of September, at least once before 2050. Additional warming is likely to further amplify thawing of permafrost, loss of seasonal snow cover, loss of land ice and of Arctic Sea ice.

(j) Almost all of the world’s glaciers have been retreating synchronously, since the 1950s. This is unprecedented in at least the last 2000 years. Again, human influence is the likely cause.

(k) Increasing agricultural and ecological droughts in some regions are a result of increased evaporation from land and transpiration from plants, called ‘evapotranspiration’, mainly on account of human-induced climate change.

(l) It is very likely that, with additional global warming, heavy precipitation events will intensify, by about 7% for each 1°C rise in temperature, and become more frequent in most regions. Similarly, owing to global warming the proportion of intense tropical cyclones (categories 4-5) and their peak wind speeds are projected to increase all over the globe.

(m) A warmer climate will intensify very wet and very dry weather, which will impact flooding, drought, climate events and the season-cycle. This will impact flooding or drought as well as CO2 and CH4 fluxes from wetlands, permafrost thaw and wildfires; which in turn would further increase concentrations of these gases in the atmosphere.

(n) Due to relative sea level rise, extreme sea level events that occurred once per century in the recent past are projected to occur at least annually at more than half of all tide gauge locations by 2100. Further, relative sea level rise is likely to lead to increased frequency and severity