India became the first country to join hands with Facebook on disaster response. On Thursday, 09 November 2017, Facebook introduced new measures — including its 'Disaster Maps' feature — in the country.
Facebook partnered with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and a non-profit body, SEEDS, to offer tools to these agencies to help them respond more effectively to natural disasters.
Key Takeaway: India isn't just another market for this feature — it's the very first country where Facebook deployed Disaster Maps in partnership with a government agency. This speaks to India's vulnerability to natural disasters and the scale of Facebook's user base here.
What Are Disaster Maps?
Disaster Maps, which was introduced globally in June 2017, uses aggregated, de-identified Facebook data to help organisations address the critical gap in information they often face when responding to natural disasters.
According to Ritesh Mehta, Head of Programmes, India, South and Central Asia at Facebook, the tool leverages the massive scale of Facebook's user base to provide real-time insights that were previously impossible to gather quickly after a disaster strikes.
- Aggregated Data: Information is combined from many users — no individual's data is exposed
- De-identified: All personal identifiers are stripped before data is shared with agencies
- Real-Time Insights: Shows where people are located, where they're moving, and whether they have connectivity after a disaster
- Decision Support: Helps agencies prioritize relief efforts based on actual population movement patterns
Privacy First: Facebook has emphasized that Disaster Maps does not share any personal information. The data is aggregated at a regional level — meaning agencies see population trends, not individual user activity.
The Partnership: NDMA and SEEDS
Facebook's disaster response initiative in India is built on two key partnerships that bring together technology expertise and on-ground disaster management experience.
- NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority): The apex government body responsible for disaster management in India — providing the institutional framework and coordination at the national level
- SEEDS (Sustainable Environment and Ecological Development Society): A non-profit organization specializing in disaster risk reduction, community resilience, and sustainable development — serving as the implementation partner on the ground
- Facebook: Providing the technology platform, data infrastructure, and tools like Disaster Maps and Workplace
Why This Matters: Technology alone can't save lives — it needs institutional backing and ground-level execution. This three-way partnership ensures that data flows from Facebook's servers to NDMA's command centers to SEEDS' volunteers in affected communities.
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First Annual Disaster Response Summit in India
Facebook also held its first annual Disaster Response Summit in India in collaboration with NDMA. The summit brought together many humanitarian organisations to help train and discuss how technology can be used to devise better responses to natural disasters and subsequent recovery.
The summit focused on the best way to leverage social media platforms to "prepare, respond and recover" — for, during, and after a disaster.
- Prepare: Using social media for early warnings, community training, and pre-disaster planning
- Respond: Real-time coordination, resource mapping, and communication during an active disaster
- Recover: Tracking recovery progress, reconnecting displaced people, and rebuilding efforts post-disaster
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ASK-DIV: Volunteer Information Network
The social networking giant is also supporting the pilot of the ASK-DIV (Aapda Samachar Karyakarta — Disaster Information Volunteers) scheme. This is a network of trained volunteers who provide supplementary information to inform government relief efforts through the Facebook Workplace platform.
The programme, which is being executed by SEEDS, will establish a network of volunteers to provide real-time, first-hand information on disasters in their local communities.
- Trained Volunteers: Not just anyone — volunteers are specifically trained in disaster reporting and information gathering
- Facebook Workplace: Uses Facebook's enterprise collaboration tool as the communication backbone — ensuring secure, organized information flow
- First-Hand Information: Volunteers report from their own communities — providing ground truth that satellites and remote sensors can't capture
- Supplementary to Official Channels: ASK-DIV doesn't replace government systems — it adds an extra layer of real-time community intelligence
How It Works: When a disaster strikes, trained ASK-DIV volunteers in the affected area use Facebook Workplace to submit real-time updates — flood levels, road blockages, shelter needs, casualty reports — which are then aggregated and shared with NDMA and state disaster authorities for faster decision-making.
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Pilot States: Assam and Uttarakhand
The ASK-DIV programme is being piloted in two disaster-prone states — Assam and Uttarakhand. These states were chosen for very specific reasons related to their vulnerability profiles.
| Factor |
Assam |
Uttarakhand |
| Primary Disaster Risk | Annual floods (Brahmaputra River) | Flash floods, landslides, cloudbursts |
| Geography | Low-lying river plains | Hilly, fragile Himalayan terrain |
| Vulnerability | Large affected population each year | Remote villages with limited access |
| Information Challenge | Tracking displacement across large areas | Communication blackouts in remote areas |
| Why ASK-DIV Helps | Volunteers can report flood levels across vast riverine areas | Local volunteers can provide info when roads and towers are down |
Context: Assam experiences devastating floods almost every year, affecting millions. Uttarakhand saw one of India's worst disaster tragedies in 2013 (Kedarnath floods). These states represent two very different disaster profiles — making them ideal testbeds for the ASK-DIV system.
All Facebook Disaster Initiatives in India at a Glance
| Initiative |
What It Does |
Partners |
Scope |
| Disaster Maps | Aggregated, de-identified population data for relief planning | NDMA, SEEDS | India-wide |
| Disaster Response Summit | Training and discussion on tech-enabled disaster response | NDMA, humanitarian orgs | India-wide |
| ASK-DIV Scheme | Trained volunteer network for real-time ground reporting | SEEDS, Facebook Workplace | Pilot: Assam & Uttarakhand |
| Safety Check | Lets users mark themselves safe during disasters | Facebook (built-in feature) | Global (active in India) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is my personal data shared with the government through Disaster Maps?
A: No. Facebook explicitly states that Disaster Maps uses aggregated and de-identified data only. Agencies see population-level trends — not individual user information, locations, or identities.
Q: Why were Assam and Uttarakhand chosen for the ASK-DIV pilot?
A: Because both are highly disaster-prone but represent very different types of disasters — floods in Assam's plains and landslides in Uttarakhand's hills. Testing in both proves the system works across diverse scenarios.
Q: What is Facebook Workplace and why is it used for disaster response?
A: Facebook Workplace is Facebook's enterprise communication tool — like a private version of Facebook for organizations. It's used because it offers secure group communication, real-time updates, and is familiar to most users, making it ideal for coordinating disaster volunteers.
Q: Can ordinary citizens volunteer for the ASK-DIV programme?
A: The programme requires trained volunteers, not just anyone. SEEDS handles the recruitment and training process. If you're in Assam or Uttarakhand, you can reach out to SEEDS to express interest in joining future cohorts.
Q: How is Disaster Maps different from Facebook's Safety Check feature?
A: Safety Check lets individual users mark themselves as safe during a disaster. Disaster Maps, on the other hand, provides aggregated population movement data to relief agencies — it's a tool for organizations, not individual users. They serve complementary purposes.
Final Thoughts
Facebook's decision to launch Disaster Maps in India — and choose India as the first country for this partnership — highlights the growing role of technology and social media platforms in disaster management. When combined with institutional expertise from NDMA and ground-level execution by SEEDS, these tools have the potential to save lives by delivering faster, more informed relief responses.
The ASK-DIV pilot in Assam and Uttarakhand will be a critical test of whether technology-enabled volunteer networks can bridge the information gap that so often slows down disaster relief in India.
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