Climate hazards and vulnerability Atlas of India: Sundarbans is cyclone capital of India: IMD report

What is the News?

India Meteorological Department (IMD) has released India’s first “Climate hazards and vulnerability Atlas of India”.

What is the Climate Hazards and Vulnerability Atlas of India?

The Atlas has been developed by the scientists at the Climate Research and Services (CRS) office of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Pune.

The atlas is depicted using Geographic Information System(GIS) tools and provide district maps on hazard events and vulnerability.

The atlas will have two uses: a) It will act as a reference for impact-based warnings that IMD issue for various regions, and b) It can be used to plan climate-resilient infrastructure.

What are the key findings of the Atlas related to cyclonic events?

Most Impacted by Cyclones: West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district within which the larger share of the Sundarbans is located is impacted by cyclones the most frequently among Indian districts.

The return period of cyclonic storms in the district was 1.67 years on a scale of 1.5 to 60 years. Shorter return periods indicate more frequent cyclones.

Cyclone Vulnerability: Purba Medinipur in West Bengal had the highest cyclone vulnerability in the country for cyclones of all intensities. 

Baleshwar in Orissa topped the list in terms of vulnerability to severe cyclonic storms. South 24 Parganas was the second-most vulnerable to all cyclones, and ranked third in terms of severe cyclonic storms.

Other key Findings: Around 4% of the districts and 7% of the population in India are highly vulnerable to cyclones. Most of the coastal districts of the East Coast are highly vulnerable to cyclones.

Source: This post is based on the article ‘Sundarbans is cyclone capital of India: IMD report’ published in Down To Earth on 25th January 2022.