ABSTRACT
For a country like India, which has witnessed multitudes of disasters within a decade and the ferocity and frequency of a disaster likely to increase in the coming years, 1 it is extremely crucial to consider an inclusive disaster mitigation plan. While disasters are inevitable, it is possible to stop a disaster from becoming a catastrophic tragedy. The role of media in disaster reduction is critical, and it often performs an important role in information dissemination during such a crisis. Unfortunately, the media, and other channels of official communication, often fail in the last-mile connect of information, which is usually the weakest link. This weak relay of information can in turn lead to massive loss of life and property and outbreak of a crisis; these losses could have been reduced. The recent flash floods in Uttarakhand (June 2013), triggered by unprecedented rains, exposed the existing lacunae in India’s disaster preparedness and underlined the need to additionally and adequately support community participation and community-based media systems, in addition to recourse to mainstream media and official communication.
