Former vice-chairman of National Disaster Management Authority M. Shashidhar Reddy has said that the absence of the disaster management body for past three months is a big blow to preparations for the country to participate in the post-2015 framework for disaster risk reduction to be evolved at the world conference on disaster management in Japan next year.
He said he and eight members of the body resigned in June in the wake of BJP-led NDA government assuming power.
Thereafter, a task force that was constituted by the Central government has watered down the NDMA, he said.
