On the rising risks of urban flooding – The expansion of settlements into flood-prone areas

Source: This post on the rising risks of urban flooding has been created based on the article “The expansion of settlements into flood-prone areas” published in The Hindu on 31^st October 2023.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3 – Disaster and disaster management.

News: This article discusses the recent findings of a World Bank Report highlighting the rising flooding risks due to expansion of settlements in flood-prone areas. It highlights the associated challenges and suggests steps to tackle them.

India’s urban areas have been flooding more and more often, destroying lives and livelihoods.

What is the current situation of floods in India?

India is highly vulnerable to floods. Out of the total geographical area of 329 million hectares (mha), more than 40 mha (~12%) is flood prone.

Flood-prone areas in India. Source: NDMA

What does a recent study by the World Bank say about flood risks?

According to the study, flood risk in many cities is rising because they are expanding into flood-prone areas. Since 1985, human settlements in flood-prone areas have more than doubled.

The study also found that middle-income countries like India have more urban settlements in flood-prone zones than low- and high-income countries.

This highlights the risk of unsustainable urbanization in India.

What is the situation of urban flood risk in India?

1) India is the 3^rd highest contributor to global settlements exposed to flood hazards.

2) India is also 3^rd in countries with new settlements expanding into flood-prone areas.

This means India is at significant risk of flood-related problems.

Who is the most vulnerable to this risk?

The risks are disproportionately higher for those living in informal structures.

Informal housing in cities is on land that is vacant and less desirable, so that they are not immediately driven off. So, they often lie in “low-lying, flood-prone areas”.

What are the reasons for the growth in human settlements in flood-prone areas?

1) Lack of environmental regulations: Environmental regulations are often applied only to big infrastructure projects and not to medium- and small-scale localities.

2) Violation of regulations: People violate existing government regulations. For instance, a rise in eco-tourism resorts on forest land and the construction of large structures on rivers’ floodplains.

3) Market forces: Market forces, such as cost of land, tend to increase expansion into flood-prone areas.

What should be done?

1) Recognition of the problem: Recognising that we are actually expanding into flood-prone areas is the first step towards sustainable urban planning.

2) Preventing disproportionate harm to the poor: There is a need to differentiate between low-income residents and unauthorised structures erected for the elite.

3) Scientific mapping: Every city needs to do a proper scientific mapping of the flood prone areas.

4) Resilient infrastructure: Urban governments need to make housing in such areas more flood-resilient and protect low-income housing.
For example, riverside settlements that use stilt houses used by the Mishing and the Miyah communities along the Brahmaputra.

Question for practice:

‘India’s rapid pace of urbanization is not without its challenges’. Discuss in light of the rising phenomenon of urban flooding in India.