Monday, August 29 2005 18:46 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Chennai: There was a need to address specific concerns of women in the initial stages of designing disaster-reduction policies and measures as they "are usually much more badly affected then men when a disaster strikes and when recovery begins", Union Environment and Forests Minister A Raja said today (Aug 29, 2005).

Inaugurating a seminar on "Disaster Management here", he said women carried the primary responsibility of taking care of children, the elderly, the disabled and the ill, whose mobility and survival during disasters may be limited.

"Sex-specific dependencies and vulnerabilities based on reproductive differences are relevant in disasters, as is the respective ability of women and men to participate fully in household, community and national decision-making about hazard and risk," he said.

Gender relation structure was part of the social and cultural context that "shapes a community's ability to anticipate, prepare for, survive, cope with, and recover from, disasters", he said.

He said recognising the important role of mangroves and shelter-belt plantation in cyclone risk costal areas of the country, the Ministry had identified some mangroves and coral reefs areas for intensive conservation and management.

Also the report and the recommendations submitted by the expert committee, under the chairmanship of the renowned agriculture scientist Dr M S Swaminathan, was "being examined and implemented" by his ministry, he said.