SPA-BMTPC ONLINE EDUCATION

The e-Course

UPCOMING COURSE
IMPROVING FLOOD RESISTANCE OF HOUSING

Introduction to e-Course

 

It is a basic e-learning course that offers awareness and understanding about natural hazards, helps identify regions with high vulnerability with respect to various hazards (earthquakes, cyclones, landslides, floods, etc.) and specifies district-wise level of damage risks to the existing housing stock.

The e-course will be a tool for effective & efficient disaster mitigation & management in the field of Architecture, Civil Engineering, Urban & Regional Planning, Housing & Infrastructure Planning, Construction Engineering & Management and Building & Materials Research. The e-course on Vulnerability Atlas of India has been launched as one of the activities under “Construction Technology Year (2019-20)” which was announced by the Hon’ble Prime Minister during Construction Technology India 2019: Expo-cum-Conference under Global Housing Technology Challenge – India on 2nd March, 2019 at New Delhi. It will be offered jointly by the School of Planning & Architecture, New Delhi and Building Materials & Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC), Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs.

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The aim of the e-Learning Course is to raise the level of awareness and preparedness as well as to enhance skills and professional competencies of key stakeholders. The course is designed specifically to build capacities of:

  1. Individuals who wish to keep themselves abreast with knowledge about various hazards, vulnerability and disaster mitigation measures, in order to be better prepared.
  2. Students, faculty, practitioners and researchers of Urban and Regional Planning, Civil Engineering and Architecture colleges or other allied disciplines.
  3. Public and private professionals working in the housing and infrastructure sectors such as roads, rail, aviation and ports.
  4. Defence and Central Armed Police Forces involved in civil engineering projects.
  5. Officials of National and State Disaster Management Authorities.
  6. Central, State and Local Government officials.
  7. Members of consulting organisations.
  8. Members of civil society organisations.

Applicants can register and log on to the e-course from anywhere at any time. The course does not require any face-to-face discussion or physical appearance in the examination. The course is beneficial for those who are unable to attend physically or do not have sufficient time to attend training programmes. The e-course allows learners to progress at their own pace with no restriction on duration.

Multiple-choice question (MCQ) based self-assessments are provided after each module. Learners are encouraged to revisit modules and repeat assessments if required. A final MCQ-based examination is conducted at the end of the course. Applicants are allowed a maximum of three attempts. Upon successful completion, a self-generated digital certificate will be awarded.

Six contact programmes will be organised annually for applicants who successfully complete the e-course within one year. These will be conducted at SPA New Delhi and other designated incubation centres. Participants may choose a location based on their convenience. The Basic Course on Vulnerability Atlas of India is currently open to all individuals interested in acquiring knowledge on the subject. Advanced professional courses will be offered shortly to those who complete the basic course or possess relevant qualifications or experience.

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Introduction to Vulnerability Atlas of India

India has a history of disasters leading to irretrievable losses to lives and properties on account to its geological settings and distinct demography. natural hazards which can be broadly classified into geophysical hazards (earthquakes, landslides & tsunamis), hydrological hazards (floods), meteorological hazards (cyclones, storm surges), and climatological hazards (thunderstorms) are common phenomenon in indian subcontinent, however the recurrent hazards leaving trail of destruction is the cause of worry. realizing the need, there have been concerted efforts made by government of india to bring paradigm shift in its approach towards disaster risk reduction. the traditional 3 rs (rescue, relief & restoration) are now replaced by 3 ps (prevention, preparedness & proofing) and pro-active pre-disaster preventive measures are part and parcel for building a new india by 2022 (75th year of indian independence) as envisioned by hon’ble prime minister. some of the watershed moments in the annals of disaster management in india are enactment of disaster management act, formulation of disaster management policy and national disaster management plan which are in line with un resolutions, hyogo framework (2005-15), sendai framework (2015-2030) on natural disaster reduction and sustainable development goals. as regards techno-legal regime towards disaster risk reduction, india can boost to have in place the model town & country planning legislation, zonal regulations, development control, building regulation/byelaws for natural hazard zones of india, model building byelaws and comprehensive indian standards on disaster management.

bmtpc under the ministry of housing & urban affairs has always played a positive role towards disaster resilience of the country and disseminating hazard resistant construction methodologies through publication of guidelines, damage assessment reports, demonstration construction, retrofitting of life line structures, expositions and capacity building. during its journey, it was realized that there is need to collate the existing hazard scenario w.r.t. earthquake, wind/cyclone and flood for the entire country delineating state/ut and district boundaries and ascertain vulnerability (level of damage risk) of existing housing stock.  the then ministry of urban development, constituted an expert group and the first ever vulnerability atlas of india was published in 1997. it was first of its kind tool which proved to be an innovative tool for assessing not only district wise hazard but also vulnerability and risk level of housing stock.

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