{"id":254172,"date":"2023-07-31T20:49:17","date_gmt":"2023-07-31T15:19:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?p=254172"},"modified":"2023-08-31T10:03:06","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T04:33:06","slug":"feroze-varun-gandhi-on-cities-flooding-perils-of-unplanned-urbanisation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/feroze-varun-gandhi-on-cities-flooding-perils-of-unplanned-urbanisation\/","title":{"rendered":"Feroze Varun Gandhi on cities\u2019 flooding: Perils of unplanned urbanisation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Source<\/strong>– The post is based on the article \u201cFeroze Varun Gandhi on cities\u2019 flooding: Perils of unplanned urbanisation\u201d <\/strong>published in \u201cThe Indian Express\u201d <\/strong>on 31st July 2023<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Syllabus: <\/strong>GS1- Urbanisation. GS3- Disaster management<\/p>\n

Relevance:<\/strong> Issues related to flooding in cities<\/p>\n

News – <\/strong>In the past few weeks, three major cities \u2014 Delhi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai \u2014 have been flooded.<\/p>\n

Why has damage and disruption caused by flooding have increased after independence?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Due to unplanned urbanisation and population growth, there has been a surge in construction<\/strong>, particularly in low-lying areas. It has resulted in the depletion of water bodies. \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The process of concretization<\/strong> has reduced rainwater percolation.<\/strong> It has led to an increase in stormwater run-off. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Most Indian cities are situated on the bank of rivers, having extensive floodplains and wetlan<\/strong>ds. India has lost 40% of its wetlands<\/strong> in the last three decades.<\/p>\n

For instance, Baroda experienced a 30% decline in its wetlands between 2005 and 2018. This loss of natural “blue infrastructure” <\/strong>has heightened the risks of flooding. <\/strong><\/p>\n

What should be done to stop flooding?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Understand the gravity of the problem- <\/strong>It is essential to conduct studies in all cities to assess the catchment area <\/strong>and flooding risks <\/strong>associated with urban water bodies and land use.<\/p>\n

Comprehensive lake and river management plans<\/strong> need to be developed. Active involvement from the local community<\/strong> is needed to ensure proper maintenance and the removal of encroachments.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Geographic information systems<\/strong> can be utilised to tag local water bodies. It will aid in the monitoring of encroachments<\/strong> and understanding their seasonal variations.<\/strong><\/p>\n

There is a need to enhance early warning systems<\/strong> for providing real-time updates on local weather patterns<\/strong>. Local rainfall data should be integrated with the Central Water Commission and regional flood control effort<\/strong>s to improve flood preparedness.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As rainfall patterns change, simulations<\/strong> will be essential. These simulations can be incorporated into flood risk maps and insurance products.<\/strong><\/p>\n

City-wide databases<\/strong> should also be established to facilitate immediate relief efforts<\/strong> in the event of a flooding-related disaster.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Improve drainage and stormwater networks<\/strong>– Most of India’s cities and towns lack a well-functioning sewerage network<\/strong>. In Delhi, the drainage system has a limited capacity. Its stormwater drains<\/strong> are quite old.<\/p>\n

In Delhi, there are areas where the drainage slopes<\/strong> are incorrectly positioned, leading to issues against gravity. In other places, there is no clear distinction between drainage and stormwater drains.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To address these issues, most cities need to develop comprehensive drainage master plans. <\/strong><\/p>\n

It is essential to conduct surveys of existing pipelines<\/strong> to identify locations prone to waterlogging.<\/p>\n

There is a need to ensure that stormwater networks <\/strong>remain separate from the drainage network<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Improving urban planning-<\/strong><\/p>\n

In Delhi, the city drainage system is managed by a range of civic agencies. It leads to coordination challenges<\/strong>. Information is not shared or shared with delay. It leads to a lack of transparency. Coordination between agencies and institutions must improve.<\/p>\n

Awareness generation<\/strong>– Furthermore, there is a need to enhance awareness<\/strong> about wetland and water body conservation.<\/p>\n

The efforts made by the Central government, such as promoting the National Mission for Clean Ganga<\/strong>, conducting a Census on Pan-India water bodie<\/strong>s, are encouraging steps. However, a well-defined urban water policy<\/strong> is necessary.<\/p>\n

Regulatory bodies<\/strong> like the Central Wetland Regulatory Authorit<\/strong>y should be granted statutory powers<\/strong> to enforce conservation measures. Additionally, involving local communitie<\/strong>s in the conservation efforts<\/strong> would be beneficial.<\/p>\n

Identify and replicate local examples-<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Mangalore<\/strong>– Earlier, wastewater flowed through open drain<\/strong>s and into the city\u2019s water bodies, polluting the freshwater sources.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The Mangalore City Corporation established wastewater treatment plants<\/strong> and created connections for end-users<\/strong>, particularly for industries. These industries faced challenges due to a limited and irregular water supply. <\/strong><\/p>\n

    To address this, the MCC proposed supplying treated effluen<\/strong>t to industries to fulfil its industrial water requirements. Private entities within MSEZL contributed to 70% of the operations and maintenance costs<\/strong> for the pumps and sewage treatment plant. <\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Kaikondrahalli Lake in Bengaluru <\/strong>– It suffered from sewage inflow and eutrophication<\/strong>. There was encroachment on the lake bed.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      BBMP went for a community-driven approach<\/strong> to revive the lake in a phased manner. BBMP demarcated the lake\u2019s boundaries.<\/p>\n

      Pollution was tackled by diversion of sewage flow through tapping pipelines<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

      Development of inlets and outlets<\/strong> for the lake was carried out. Embankments and a pathway <\/strong>around the waterbody were created. All of this was done with local participation.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Source– The post is based on the article \u201cFeroze Varun Gandhi on cities\u2019 flooding: Perils of unplanned urbanisation\u201d published in \u201cThe Indian Express\u201d on 31st July 2023. Syllabus: GS1- Urbanisation. GS3- Disaster management Relevance: Issues related to flooding in cities News – In the past few weeks, three major cities \u2014 Delhi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai \u2014… Continue reading Feroze Varun Gandhi on cities\u2019 flooding: Perils of unplanned urbanisation<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230,9],"tags":[411,216,10500],"class_list":["post-254172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","category-public","tag-disaster-management","tag-gs-paper-3","tag-indian-express","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=254172"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254172\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=254172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=254172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=254172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}