Cover story | Disaster Risk Resilience
A
report by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction ranked India as the world’s third most disaster prone country. Having one of the widest varieties of landscapes, India is consequently also prone to a diverse set of disasters, both natural and manmade. While states in the south and
east are prone to cyclones, the north and north-eastern states are prone to landslides. The Kedarnath flood of 2013, caused by cloudburst and heavy rainfall and the overflowing of the Chorabari Lake, led to the death of 5700 people in the region, making it one of the worst natural disasters in India in recent times. Cyclones Amphan and Tauktae also unleashed destruction on the eastern and southern states
of India and led to several deaths and displacement of lakhs. Disasters not only result in loss of life, they also entail financial and economic loss for the people and the country at large. A study by Down to Earth determined that India lost an estimated US$ 232 billion in 2019 due to natural disasters alone, not only in post-disaster rehabilitation efforts but also due to the destruction that the
Preparing Indian cities for better disaster response 24 August 2021 | www.urbanupdate.in
