Need to be better prepared for natural disasters: PM

New Delhi, April 21 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Sunday said there was need to identify the best practices in disaster management, and disseminate them widely for better preparedness.

"Handling disasters requires a multi-disciplinary approach and specialized skills acquired over a long time. Some of our civil servants get first-hand experience in the area of disaster management very early in their career," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, addressing an audience here on the country's eighth Civil Services Day.

"We ought to identify best practices, document them properly and disseminate them widely so that we are prepared when a disaster hits. While relief and rehabilitation are central to our approach in managing the fallout once a disaster happens, we should not lose sight of pre-disaster issues of prevention, mitigation, and preparedness," he said.

The prime minister said India had always been vulnerable to natural disasters like floods, droughts, cyclones, earthquakes and landslides.

"Climate change is likely to further accentuate the frequency and intensity of these natural disasters. In addition, unsafe building practices in rapidly growing urban settlements also constitute a major challenge for those charged with the responsibility of managing disasters," he said.