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Bill passed to empower civil defence to handle disaster management

The bill was passed by a voice vote even as other opposition parties including the Left and the BJP protested the way in which it was being adopted without discussion.

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A bill to empower civil defence to deal with disaster management work, apart from protecting people and their property in case of an attack, was passed by the Lok Sabha without any debate today.

The Civil Defence (Amendment) Bill 2009 was moved for consideration and passing by Minister of State for Home M Ramachandran amidst slogans and counter-slogans on Telangana issue by members of TDP, Congress and TRS.

The bill was passed by a voice vote even as other opposition parties including the Left and the BJP protested the way in which it was being adopted without discussion.

The legislation seeks to amend the 1968 Civil Defence Act to expand the role of Civil Defence by widening its scope to include measures to deal with disaster management before, during or after any disaster.

Under the original Act, civil defence includes any measure, not amounting to actual combat, to protect "any person, property, place or thing in India against any hostile attack whether from land, air, sea and other places," the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the bill said.

After the Disaster Management Act 2005 was enacted, it was felt that various wings of the government should be mobilised to prevent or mitigate any disaster by undertaking a prompt, coordinated and holistic response.

As civil defence could play a vital role in this area, it was decided to amend the Act to include disaster management within the ambit of its role.

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