Disaster Management Act no longer in force after Mar. 31, says Home Secretary 

More than 100 orders were issued by the Home Ministry to manage the COVID-19 pandemic

The provisions of the Disaster Management (DM) Act, 2005 will not be invoked in the country after March 31 due to the overall improvement in the situation and the preparedness of the government in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla informed the States on Tuesday in a letter.

Local authorities and State police can still invoke fines and criminal cases against persons violating COVID-19 norms under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), a senior government official said.

The Union Health Ministry said that use of face masks and following hand hygiene will continue to guide COVID-19 management measures.

The DM Act, first enacted in the country in 2005 after the tsunami disaster, was for the first time invoked on March 24, 2020 following the onset of the pandemic. The Act for the first time also introduced a legal framework for disaster management in the country, with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) being the nodal Ministry.

From March 24, 2020 more than 100 orders under the DM Act were issued by the MHA on the directions of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The national lockdown in 2020 and the distribution of oxygen to various hospitals across the country during the second wave were controlled by the MHA under the provisions of the DM Act. The last order was issued by the MHA on February 25, which will remain effective till March 31.

Mr. Bhalla said that over the last 24 months, significant capacities have been developed for various aspects of management of the pandemic, such as diagnostics, surveillance, contact tracing, treatment and vaccination, and hospital infrastructure, and the general public has a much higher level of awareness on COVID appropriate behaviour.

The MHA added that States and Union territories have also developed their own capacities and systems, and implemented detailed and specific plans for managing the pandemic.