IMPACT OF HEAVY DOWNPOUR ON HUMAN RESOURCES IN UTTARAKHAND … of Heavy Downpour... · Impact of...

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Jharkhand Journal of Development and Management Studies XISS, Ranchi, Vol. 15, No.3, September 2017, pp. 7407-7425 IMPACT OF HEAVY DOWNPOUR ON HUMAN RESOURCES IN UTTARAKHAND Rajender Singh Bisht 1 The Himalayan state of Uttarakhand in the Union of India is popularly known for its mesmerising landscapes, ashrams and spurring religious tourism. But it also has a haunting history of being frequented by landslides, flash floods, torrential rains and earthquakes. Most damaging are the torrential rains during the monsoon season. The issues have been further aggravated by climate change and anthropogenic activities like the construction of roads, dams, houses close to embankment areas, etc. But in this entire tirade, the least talked about are the local people who bear the repercussions of these ill-conceived interference with Mother Nature. This paper tries to study the different factors which influence the condition of people after disaster strikes with a focus on the post-rehabilitation period. The study is based on literature review which gives a glimpse of the impact of seasonal rains on local people’s lives. It looks at miserable state of local communities, especially vulnerable groups, as they struggle to recover from disasters and to prepare for any future happenings. Keywords : Rainfall, Flash floods, Anthropogenic Activities, Rehabilitation, Mitigation Introduction Formed in the year 2000, and located in the young Himalayan range, Uttarakhand is one of the most progressive states in the union of India. The hill state is thriving economically and has been registering a significant growth over the years (IBEF, 2017). But due to its “physiography, climate and prevailing socio-economic condition and geographical setup, the state is highly vulnerable to disasters like landslides, flash floods, earthquakes, forest fires and avalanches” (Satendra, 2003). The state has a troubling history of frequent disasters over the years. Over the years these disasters have left a serious impact on human lives. Most of these disasters have been perpetrated by incessant rainfall. With an average rainfall between 1000-2500mm every year (Kala, 2014, p.144), Uttarakhand is one of India’s highest recipients of seasonal rainfall in the monsoon season. These rainfalls have been playing a major role in massive disaster occurrences like landslides and flash floods. In 2013, during the infamous catastrophe of Kedarnath flash floods, there was a huge loss of both human life and property. Death figures were very harrowing, with total deaths amounting to more than 10,000 within just 24 hours (Kumar, 2013, p.1). Such disasters have become a regular phenomenon in this part of the world. 7407 1 PGDM- Rural Management, Xavier Institute of Social Service, Dr. Camil Bulcke Path, Ranchi, Phone: +91- 8968568189, Email: [email protected]

Transcript of IMPACT OF HEAVY DOWNPOUR ON HUMAN RESOURCES IN UTTARAKHAND … of Heavy Downpour... · Impact of...

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Jharkhand Journal of Development and Management StudiesXISS, Ranchi, Vol. 15, No.3, September 2017, pp. 7407-7425

IMPACT OF HEAVY DOWNPOUR ON HUMAN RESOURCESIN UTTARAKHAND

Rajender Singh Bisht1

The Himalayan state of Uttarakhand in the Union of India is popularlyknown for its mesmerising landscapes, ashrams and spurring religioustourism. But it also has a haunting history of being frequented bylandslides, flash floods, torrential rains and earthquakes. Mostdamaging are the torrential rains during the monsoon season. Theissues have been further aggravated by climate change andanthropogenic activities like the construction of roads, dams, housesclose to embankment areas, etc. But in this entire tirade, the leasttalked about are the local people who bear the repercussions of theseill-conceived interference with Mother Nature. This paper tries tostudy the different factors which influence the condition of peopleafter disaster strikes with a focus on the post-rehabilitation period.The study is based on literature review which gives a glimpse of theimpact of seasonal rains on local people’s lives. It looks at miserablestate of local communities, especially vulnerable groups, as theystruggle to recover from disasters and to prepare for any futurehappenings.

Keywords : Rainfall, Flash floods, Anthropogenic Activities,Rehabilitation, Mitigation

IntroductionFormed in the year 2000, and located in the young Himalayan range,Uttarakhand is one of the most progressive states in the union ofIndia. The hill state is thriving economically and has been registeringa significant growth over the years (IBEF, 2017). But due to its“physiography, climate and prevailing socio-economic condition andgeographical setup, the state is highly vulnerable to disasters likelandslides, flash floods, earthquakes, forest fires and avalanches”(Satendra, 2003). The state has a troubling history of frequentdisasters over the years. Over the years these disasters have left aserious impact on human lives. Most of these disasters have beenperpetrated by incessant rainfall. With an average rainfall between1000-2500mm every year (Kala, 2014, p.144), Uttarakhand is one ofIndia’s highest recipients of seasonal rainfall in the monsoon season.These rainfalls have been playing a major role in massive disasteroccurrences like landslides and flash floods. In 2013, during theinfamous catastrophe of Kedarnath flash floods, there was a hugeloss of both human life and property. Death figures were veryharrowing, with total deaths amounting to more than 10,000 withinjust 24 hours (Kumar, 2013, p.1). Such disasters have become aregular phenomenon in this part of the world.

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1 PGDM- Rural Management, Xavier Institute of Social Service, Dr. Camil BulckePath, Ranchi, Phone: +91- 8968568189, Email: [email protected]

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In the last few years, the frequency of disaster has beenincreasing at a drastic rate. This adversity has been aggravated byill-conceived and unplanned anthropogenic activities in the fragileecosystem of the hills. A large number of development activities havebeen carried out in the hills which enhance the scale of the disaster(Kala, 2014, p.144). Most of these infrastructural activities have noprior impact or risk assessment. The government have haphazardlyapproved plethora of projects which includes widening of roads, damconstruction etc. Apart from the illegal rampant construction andtourism inflow is having undulated impact on its ecological imbalance(Chopra, 2014, p.18). The state’s economy has a high dependence ontourism sector due to its pilgrimages. Since the formation of the state,the sector has developed at a staggering rate of 168 percent over 12years (Chakravartty, 2013). But the sector is largely unregulated,owing to which illegal constructions have disturbed the state’s fragileecology. Furthermore, the damming of rivers has posed a huge threatto the state. According to Aggarwal (2013) report, the state had morethan 244 projects installed and much more are proposed. The massiveconstructions leave a huge garb of debris carelessly left after thework. The government on its part have overlooked all these activities,though ironically they have been actively involved. Many of theprojects go ahead without the prescribed prior environmental andsocial assessments (Rana, Sati, & Sundriyal, 2007, p.347). Suchunjust tampering with precarious Himalayan slopes have made thefragile ecosystem unbalanced (Sati, Sundriyal, Rana, & Dangwal,2011, p. 1617).

But in this entire debate on deluge, the least talked aboutelement of the disaster are its victims. Every year the incessant rainswreak havoc on the lives of local people. There is a huge loss of lifeand property. After the disaster, these people face a surmountabletask of rebuilding and recovery. Such exposure to disaster results inwidespread losses and seriously disrupts the functioning of the localcommunity (Hill & Chhotray, 2011). Their livelihood is seriouslyaffected. The rescue and relief measures by governments are shortterm but there is huge uncertainty about full-scale recovery. Recoveryis characterised by the resurrection of people lives in all aspects:social, economic and political. But the most fundamental aspect beingthe preparedness of communities towards future occurrences of anydisaster (Hill & Chhotray, 2011). We can take inspiration from ourneighbouring country Bhutan, which is geographically just likeUttarakhand. Bhutan’s tourism regulation on the inflow of touristsand political will are the best examples of Himalayan sustainabledevelopment.

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In this paper, the emphasis is on understanding the plight ofvictims. It highlights that during any disaster victims should be giventhe prime importance for the management of disaster outburst.Generally after a disaster, people (other than victims) are aware ofrescue and rehabilitation. The government is busy coordinating withdefence and task forces to safeguard its people. During that period,the sentiments are high and condolences are showered from acrossthe globe. Help and support (both financially and physically) arerushed to the affected ones. But what happens after that? Do thelives of all those affected get back on track?

Conceptual Framework

Many different variants of definition on disaster and hazard havebeen given by the researchers and organisations but they all convergeto one focal point of its impact. World Health Organisation (2002)defines that “A disaster is an occurrence disrupting the normalconditions of existence and causing a level of suffering that exceedsthe capacity of adjustment to the affected community” whereashazard is defined as “A natural or human-made event that threatensto adversely affect human life, property or activity to the extent ofcausing a disaster”. Thus “the disaster, though triggered by hazardevents are the result of the range of social, economic and politicalconditions” (Hill & Chhotray, 2011). In the case of Uttarakhand, theecosystem imbalance is caused by excessive anthropogenic activities.

Even though climate change is a natural process butanthropogenic activities have given an impetus to it (Jain, 2016). Inthe mad race to consume more and more individuals are now makingdecision that benefits themselves (Kumar & Kumar, 2017, p.18). Themyopic development activities have put the state’s natural ecosystemat risk. One of the major outcomes of this development is torrentialrains during the monsoon season. Unlike the long spells of normalrains, these days the precipitations are more erratic in nature. Therainfall are so heavy that they lead to flash flooding. As defined byMeteorological office, Govt. of U.K. (2014), “Flash flooding happenswhen rainfall falls so fast that the underlying ground cannot cope,or drain it away, fast enough”. Frequent flash flooding due to rainsin the state of Uttarakhand has wreaked havoc every year (Kumar,2013, p.107). These rains are accompanied by huge landslides. Duringthis chaos, a huge loss of life and property is registered every yearafter the disaster. Local residents are badly hit both economicallyand socially in the aftermath of such disaster (Kala, 2014, p.144).Evenafter providing aid to the people, the government has failed miserablyto mitigate the aftermath impact of the disaster. Hence the local

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community takes a longer time to recover. Even then the lack ofproper preparedness leaves them vulnerable to future suchoccurrences. This study incorporates a brief overview and analysisof previous studies on the torrential rains, flash floods and landslidesthat hit Uttarakhand.

Historical Perspective

Uttarakhand has a long history of being frequented by flashfloods and extensive research has been carried out on mitigationmeasures. As cited by Pande (2010) the earliest known observationon landslides was conducted by Lt. Col Pulford, SuperintendingEngineer, who issued warning after carefully analysing a 300 m damformed by landslides. After India’s independence, many studies andmuch research have been conducted to understand the differentfacets of disaster: causes, mitigation, management and its associatedissues. Rains have played a key role in disaster occurrences as wasin the case of Kaliasaur landslide in Garhwal Himalaya whereseasonal rains were mainly responsible for the landslides(Sinha &Kumar, 2001, p. 265). In the year 2010, there was sudden increasein the precipitation in the upper Ganga and Alaknanada valley whichled to a loss of 220 people and un-quantified collateral damage. Therewas an exceptional rainfall in the month of September which wasunusual in this area (see fig 1).

Fig1. Rainfall variability in percentage during August andSeptember (summer monsoon) for the past 10 years

Source: (Sati, Sundriyal, Rana, & Dangwal, 2011)

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Later studies have observed that mainly human developmentactivities have aggravated the possibility of a huge disaster (RanaSati & Sundriyal, 2007). Similarly, other studies have dealt with thecauses and have suggested strong approaches for minimising theimpact of disaster caused by rains and landslides simultaneously(Kumar, 2013,p.106). Flash floods are considered as commondisasters in Uttarakhand, which has highest fatality rate in India(Pande, 2010). The table below further illustrates the developmentof these disasters over the years.

Table-1. Disasters in Uttarakhand till 2016 (Flood andLandslide)

Year Disaster Impact1978 Bhagirathi Flash Floods Devastating impact on region1980 Gyansu Nala landslide Claimed 24 lives and destroyed

several Houses1991 Uttarkashi Earthquake Caused loss of 653 human lives,

injuries to about 6,000 people andthe death of 1,300 head of livestockin addition to damage to buildings,other structures and theinfrastructure

1998 Malpa Landslide Devastating Impact on the region2001 Phata Landslide Devastating Impact on the region2003 Landslide Triggered by a cloud Engulfed three 4-story hotels and

burst in Varunawat Hills, damaged several building, roadsUttarkashi and other infrastructure. The

estimated damages were to the tuneof about 50 million dollars.

2009 Landslide disaster on Kuity Wiped out two Villages namelyvillage on Berinag-Munsiyari Jhakhla and Lah, claiming 43 lives.Road, Pithoragarh District

2010 Floods, cloudburst and landslide Haridwar and Rishikesh weresubmerged. 42 Died in Almora andNainital District

2013 Flash Floods and Cloudburst in More than 10,000 lost their lives.Kedarnath 110,000 pilgrims were stranded.

2016 Heavy Rain in Pithoragarh and At least 30 People were killedChamoli District

Sources:*For 1978-2009: By HESCO 2009; **For 2010 and 2013: Report by FirstPost Staff

Table 1 presents a clear picture and brief summary of some ofthe major disasters. From the year 1978-2003, the frequency ofoccurrence was very low in the state. Only 5 major calamities struck

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the state. Whereas since 2003 there has been a sudden increase indisaster events. The sudden increase can be explained by the factthat before its separation, the region received very less attentionfrom the central and erstwhile Uttar Pradesh government butsurprisingly after 2000, when it was created out of Uttar Pradesh,the state started receiving direct funding from the centre. The bargraph below illustrates the growth in Gross State Domestic Productof the Uttarakhand before and after its formation.

Figure 1. Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) before andafter formation of Uttarakhand

Source: Gupta, 2012

Through this graph, it is evident that after the separationfrom parent state, the state started growing at a very quick rate. Asearly as 1995-96, the GSDP of the state (separately calculated byplanning commission) was in the negative (-0.2). The GSDP ofUttarakhand in the year 2001-02 was merely 5.5 and by 2012, itrose to 12.3. This sudden growth was due to the industrialisation ofthe state and infrastructure projects like roads, dams, administrativebuildings etc. This growth motivated the government and people toreap the benefits which led to the illegal and unplanned constructionactivities.

Current Scenario

In the later period of its statehood, there were few studies done onits climatic disorder. The bulk of studies published on Uttrakhandemerged after Kedarnath catastrophe and have been carried out onthe impact of seasonal rains. In the Kedarnath catastrophe of 2013,around 10,000 people lost their lives, more than 4,000 went missingand lakhs of people were left stranded (Kumar, 2013). After the

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deluge in Kedarnath the researcher began their quest for evidenceand solutions to mitigate the impact of the disaster. Studies such asthat by Rautela (2016) dissected the disaster allowing the events tobe carefully analysed. The international organisation like WorldBank, UNICEF, and Red Cross stepped up to the cause for impactstudies on the disaster.

Various other studies have tried to expose the long-termchallenges posed by floods (“A Himalayan Tragedy,” 2013). AHimalayan Tragedy,” (2013) have highlighted the flaws in governanceand anthropogenic activities responsible for such occurrences.Through these studies, these discrepancies have been exposed timeand again. Since its formation, the State Disaster ManagementAuthority (SDMA) in 2007, a state nodal agency for disaster riskreduction had no rules and regulation framed till the Kedarnathflash floods (Kala, 2014, p.148). The Impact of these irregularitieshas been traumatising. People became psychologically unstable andmany were unable to come out of trauma ( Chandran et. al., 2015).Even after 2013 disaster, there have been studies on successive floodsdue to heavy seasonal rainfall in the state. These studies have largelyfocused on the curative measures rather than exploring technicalmachinery to deal with the disaster.

Some authors have highlighted the disaster risk reduction inthe sensitive Himalayan ecosystem (Kala, 2014)and underlined theimmediate need to invoke various measure to adopt a policy level tomitigate disaster (Srinivasan, 2013). Dysfunctional NDMA (NationalDisaster Management Agency), a central nodal disaster riskreduction agency and their responsive central government waslambasted for its lacklustre nature. Aftermath of 2013, the NGT(National Green Tribunal) became active and took punitive measuresagainst irresponsible companies for dumping huge amounts of muckinto free-flowing rivers near the dams (Tripathi, 2016).

Objectives

This study tries to investigate and understand the following pointsin a systematic way:

Effect of the torrential rainfall on the vulnerable group i.e.women and child.

Quantum loss of property and livelihood and its impact onlocal people’s lives.

It tries to understand the situations of local communitiesonce the relief and rescue is done.

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Understanding the reasons for rampant migration afterthe disaster and how this is slowly becoming a concern forthe state.

To understand the psychological impact of disasters causedby seasonal rain.

Research Methodology

To understand the whole concept and its impact on human resources,the author adopted the following methodology:

Secondary data available from all sources, e.g. journal,research papers, reports etc. is under review. Internetsearch engines like Google Scholar were really helpful infinding out pertinent information. These sources are notonly restricted to this papers topic. Some other similardisasters have been studied to get clarity on subject.

Empirical Evidences were retrieved from various sourcesfrom various governments (Ministries), census India, andother statistical sources, which were carefully analysed.

The author is himself a resident of a small district namedChampawat in Uttrakhand, he has tried to includeexperience of himself and other people, who were eitherdirectly or indirectly affected by these torrential rains.

Comparative studies and cases have been presented todetermine the suffering of the people and degree of lossesof human lives, and property.

Findings and Analysis: Factors Affecting People

a) Social Aspects

i. Health

In the aftermath of the deluge in Uttarakhand, the people arehighly vulnerable to diseases outbreak and epidemics as deadbodies and animal carcases rot openly in the environment. Specialcare is required for women and child. Pregnant and lactating mothers are worst sufferers of such disaster. The non-institutionaldelivery can take a toll on the health of both, the baby and the mother.After disaster rehabilitation camp, women generally aremalnourished due to poor food and lodging, which is dreadful forbaby and herself.

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Apart from physical morbidity, the disaster leaves people inserious mental trauma, especially women, children and old peoplewho are emotionally weak (Verma, 2016). In their sample survey onold people after the 2013 Kedarnath flash flood, Chandran et. al(2015) found that old people were experiencing recurrent flashbacks,intrusive memories of disaster and restlessness. In the longer run,these depressed people have a very less chance of recovering to anormal state. The following case highlights the degree of healthdamage it can cause to affected households.

Case 1: Anita Devi is a widow who lives in a small hamlet inUttarkashi district. Her husband was martyred in the 1999 Kargilwar. Since then, she had single-handedly raised her only son. Onnight of 27 July 2014, there was abrupt increase in downpour in herregion. Her son had gone to bathroom to relieve himself when excessrainfall led to a sudden displacement of land on which the toilet wasconstructed and before the poor boy could rescue himself the wholestructure including the mounted water tank fell on him and he diedinstantly. The mother could not bear the loss and has becomementally ill since then.

ii. Vulnerable Groups

Even though the disaster wreaks havoc on people's lives but afterthe disaster, the vulnerable groups are least secured socially. Thethreat of sexual abuse and trafficking looms large after the disasteron these groups (Thomson Retuters Foundation, 2016). Also inHimalayan areas, the women lives are full of hardships and rainsaggravate the suffering. They have to walk distances to collect fuelwoods, water and grass for family and livestock. In this whole event,the pregnant and lactating mothers are at a grave risk of gettingseverely infected by diseases and other psychological issues (Polanki,2013). The following case study was dictated the trauma of a 19 yearold girl.

Case 2: Sushila is a19 year old daughter of a poor daily wagelabourer, who lived in a small village in the Garhwal Srinagar district.Her family constituted of 5 members including her parents and twoteenage sisters'. Everyone in the family was going to school. Sushilawanted to become a teacher after finishing education. In year 2013,in aftermath of Kedarnath tragedy, the whole family was lost in thedeluge and only the elder daughter survived. Fearing for hervulnerability, her close relatives got her married to a local boy whoworked as a casual labour in New Delhi. After marriage the coupleshifted to New Delhi. The husband was an addicted drunkard and

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domestic violence was very common in the family. She complainedabout this abuse to her aunt and uncle but to her dismay, they didnot lend her any support. Now even though there are deep scar onher face, Sushila is coerced into a miserable life and has no otherplace to go.

Education

A huge amount of infrastructural properties is lost during a disaster.The incessant rainfall in Uttarakhand lashes away buildings, housesetc. In such loss, the educational institutions in rural pockets becomeacutely dysfunctional. Sometimes the whole infrastructure isconverted into debris. Because of which the education of children isdisturbed. After the disaster, sometimes families are shifted torehabilitation camps and for months the children’s are deprived ofeducation. Traumatised by the calamities, it becomes really difficultfor children to freshly restart the studies. In some cases, many ofthese children lose their parents and guardian and are forced to dropout of their schools to take up odd jobs and earn living for themselvesand their family.

iii. Culture

Due to disaster people have either ceased or are unable to cherishfestivals and family affairs. A large number of religious sites aredamaged or washed away by rains, leaving people in an environmentof hopelessness (Kala, 2014, p.146). There is a dead silence in theaffected communities. Such impacts are not quantifiable unlikeproperty, hence there are no measures developed to help people.The people in the hills are extremely religious. In their belief system,their entire universe (forest, food, beauty etc.) is the creation of god.This has been an integral part of their folk culture. The suddenincrease in frequency of disasters has forced them to believe thatthese sudden occurrences are fury of god.

b) Economic Aspects

i. Livelihood and Migration Crisis

The local people in the Uttarakhand are largely dependent on tourismand agriculture for their livelihood. The heavy rainfall during themonsoon leads to soil erosion inflicting a great loss of agricultureland and its fertility. Many farms are swept away and horticulturepractices are ravaged (Kala, 2014).

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Apart from agricultural dependency, the people in hill have agreat dependence on the tourism industry for a livelihood.Uttarakhand itself is one of the highest recipients of tourism becauseof its pilgrimages and the state relies heavily on this sector for itseconomic growth. Since its formation, tourism sector has increasedby 168 percent over the span of 12 years. Every year 23 to 24 lakhpilgrim arrived in the state for Char Dham Yatra (four holypilgrimages)- Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri (PTI,2016). But after series of disaster (mainly caused by rain), the stateis losing its high status in tourism (Trivedi, 2014). People from otherstates are now scared and especially after the 2013 Kedarnath flashflood, the sector has plunged to a significant level. According to PHDChamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI), Uttarakhandincurred at a loss of about 12,000 crores immediately after Kedarnathcalamity (Chakravartty, 2013). Below is a line graph of the tourisminflow, which will give a better picture about the consequences ofdisaster on tourism industry which is the backbone of Uttarakhand’seconomy.

Figure 2. Touristvisiting in Uttarakhand (since formation)

Source: India Tourism Statistics, Ministry of Tourism& UttarakhandTourism Development Board, 2014

From the above graph, it is clear that after a continuousgrowth for many years (2000-2010), the tourism inflow beganreceding (fig 2). After it was separated from Uttar Pradesh in theyear 2000, the government started receiving help in the form ofspecial packages, a part of which was invested in giving a fillip toboth religious and non- religious tourism. In the year 2000, 11 milliontourists visited, which significantly increased to 31 Million by theyear 2010. Thereafter due to rampant construction activities,deforestation and host of other reason (discussed above) led to the

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frequent occurrence of flash floods. Hence the net inflow oftourist began declining. But the major impact on the tourismsector was felt in the aftermath of the Kedarnath catastrophe(fig 2) in the year 2013. The flash flood occurred during the monsoonmonth of June, which discouraged the tourism for thelater part ofthe year and hence the tourism inflow plummeted to 20 million inthat year. A vast number of other small and unaccounted enterprisesalso got washed away due to incessant rains.

Case 3: In September 2010, there was a heavy down pour ofover 336% with respect to previous 9 years i.e. 2000-2009 in upperGanga and Alaknanada valley. The heavy downpour causedlandslides, which eventually killed 220 people, 84 livestock died, 534houses were fully damaged and 2138 houses were partially damageddue to heavy precipitation within 4 days from 18 to 21 September.Prior to heavy rainfall, the highway always remained busythroughout the year and the shops made good profits. But postlandslides, the businesses in the local area were badly disturbed.People lost their small shops which were their primary source oflivelihood. Witnessing no alternatives people migrated to cities insearch of livelihood. The women who were disguisedly employed inthe farms lost their crops and the household had nothing to feedthemselves. Eventually they followed men, who were looking for jobsin the industries in cities like Dehradun and Delhi. Some familieseven traversed to plains of Punjab to work as manual labourers inthe fields. (Case Source: Sati, Sundriyal, Rana, & Dangwal, 2011).

Such huge losses are compounded by government inabilityto provide a potent and immediate resettlement and reconstructionplan which is causing rampant migration of people out of the state.According to the census of 2011, out of Uttarakhand’s 16,793 villages,1,053 have no inhabitants and another 405 of them have less than10 occupants (Venkatesh, 2015). Even though many other factorscontribute to this rampant migration crisis but the disaster is oneof the prime motivations. Because of infrastructural loss, peopleare relocating to new places deserting their own motherland(Upadhayay, 2014). In another survey sponsored by the NationalInstitute of Rural Development, Hyderabad, about 88 percent of thehouseholds in 18 sample villages in Pauri Garhwal and Almoradistricts had at least one member migrating for employment.Following table presents a factual picture of migration status in thestate in comparison to whole nation’s average.

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Table-2. Comparative Data of All-India and UttarakhandProportion of Internal Migrants by Reason for Migration

for Rural-to-Urban Streams (Per Cent) (2007–08)

Reasons for Migration All India UttarakhandMale Female Male FemaleRural- Rural- Rural- Rural-Urban Urban Urban Urban

Employment-related reasons 60.9 2.6 38.1 0.3Studies 7.8 2.5 5.1 0.3Marriage 1.6 62.8 4.8 83.8Movement of parents/earning 22.8 28.2 28.9 12.7memberOther 6.9 4 20.7 2.5All 100 100 100 100

Source: NSS: 64 Round, 2008

From table 2, we can understand that the annual migration isalarmingly high in Uttarakhand if we compare it to the nationallevel. The massive internal migration is sometimes very difficult toenumerate and gets alienated from limited percolation of state andcentral programmes (Abbas & Verma, 2014). If we compare thereasons for migration in Uttarakhand to that of the whole countrythen the primary reasons are employment and due to movements ofthe parents/earning members. In comparison to the national level,the “employment-related reasons” accrue 38.1 percent of themigration whereas nationally it contributes 29.1 percent. Secondly,“movements of the parents/earning members” related migration ishigher than the national average. Hence analysing the abovementioned facts (table 2) it is clear that the migration is largely dueto lack of livelihood sources (refer to table 2) and loss inflicted byfrequent disasters over the years. Most of these migrants weredependent on agriculture which was worst hit by heavy rainfall. Thetable also provides a contrast between the migration pattern of Malesand Females. The Male member migration is largely motivated bylack of livelihood opportunities in hills, whereas the females aredependent on males or the earning members. Hence they migratealong with their husband, which is why both the “Employment-related reasons” and “Movement of parents/earning member” arehigh in number.

ii. Infrastructure

The rains are the biggest curse for infrastructural development inthe Himalayas. Annually a number of houses are washed away. Thereis a significant dearth of data on the number, but these rains wreak

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havoc on private and public properties. In the 2013 floods, manyhydropower projects stopped functioning (Schneider, 2014). Therewas a compounded estimated loss of more than $3.8 billion (GFDRR,2013). Apart from concrete structures, vast stretches of road wereswept away and many new projects in the making have had toundergo reconstruction every year. Hence the cost of repairing isvery high. In 2016, due to rains, 50 metres of Gangotri highway waswashed away (First Post Staff, 2016). Before proposing new projects,these old rebuildings become a big hindrance.

Following the heavy downpour, the telecom sector is worstaffected by such disaster. After the disaster, all telephones lines aredisturbed. The wireless communication network also comes to a haltdue to loss of network towers. The hopes of survivors in disaster arewiped away by incessant rains. Later these projects take the time torebuild because of the geographical hindrances, hence isolating thelocal masses from the external world. The state requires more of adecentralised form of communication which will be reliable at thetime of catastrophe’s rather than the standard Indian model.

Case 4: Dhoraj is a small hamlet in the tehsil Pati of districtChampawat. During the flash floods in the year 2016 the local gotfully disconnected from the external world. The road connecting thevillage with external world collapsed. The district food supplies asdisaster relief could not reach the village on time. The local peoplehad to traverse a long distance of 5 Km to reach to the highway sothat they could avail food supplies and then again they had to carrythe supplies back to their families. The village was in complete darkfor 2 months as the electricity poles were completely uprooted andeven the district administration was bit lax on its support. The onlynatural spring for water supply was so furious that the physicalinfrastructure could not withstand it and got badly damaged. Thevillagers had to do all their work manually for their survival.

c) Politico-Administrative Aspect

The full recovery of people requires a strong political andadministrative will as there are a large number of problems thathave to be dealt with. The politico-administrative machinery issupposed to work with the people to develop livelihood, rebuildingprocess, sanitation and hygiene and provide counselling forpsychological cases. The allocation of land, availability of funds,engagement of planners and other experts are such issues whichcannot be done without proper consent and willingness of thesequarters (Satendra, 2003).

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But for years the Uttarakhand government has failed tomanage its omnipresent disasters. It’s incompetence has beenexposed repeatedly every year during the monsoon season. Theadministrative structure has been hopelessly maligned by corruptionactivities (Satendra, 2003).

After the huge clamour of immediate rescue and rehabilitation,the government moves back to its old ways i.e. neglecting its ownpeople when they need it most. People have been regularlycomplaining, but to the people‘s dismay, tshe establishments havenot heeded to their painful cries. There is a serious paucity ofcoordination of government with the local communities, which isfostering a sense of anti-political feeling. People have lost their hopesfrom the politico-administrative system.

Conclusion and Recommendations

The state of Uttarakhand for years have been ravaged by annualseasonal rainfall but no mitigation measures have been taken. Thefrequency of flash floods has been increasing alarmingly. Thegovernment needs to focus on its people before the hill villages becomecompletely haunted. It needs to regulate the brazen exploitation ofland, illegal construction and its tourism industry. Hence, in spite ofjust primary care, the government needs to work with localcommunities to reclaim the lost beauty of hills and save the existing.The people need to be at the centre of every development. Unlessand until they are included in decision making, the old mistakes willturn into a blunder, which might not be controllable in future. Thegovernment needs to focus on four core aspects: technology,community-led disaster preparedness, livelihood policies for affectedvictims and finally redefining developmental programmes.

Use Of ModernTechnology

The modern technology like Doppler radar plays a pivotal role in theimproving an early warning system so that rescue operation can beconducted before the disaster wreaks havoc. At present, the statelacks proper warning system and is dependent on other states formeteorological reports. Government authorities have been lingeringthe procurements and the fate of Doppler is hanging in balance(Talwar, 2016). Apart from Doppler radar, there is also a need tocomplement it with early warning message system for local people.Since due to its topography it is very difficult to facilitate rescue andrelief, the locals if awared through messages in vernacular languages,then the impact of an inevitable disaster can be mitigated.

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Community-led Disaster Preparedness

Apart from a well-established early warning system, the governmentmust emphasis on the development of a micro-disaster plan forcommunity-led disaster preparedness. The Panchayati RajInstitutions (PRIs) needs to play an active role in integrated riskmanagement i.e. they must check deforestation, rampant housingconstruction and blind development activities. Their role is to resistsuch ill-conceived changes. To mitigate the impact of the disaster,the government needs to urgently develop a disaster managementplan. Within this programme, the major thrust should be to traincadres at the community level. The community needs to be maderesilient towards any kind of catastrophe. The local cadres, especiallyyouth should be trained who will become the first line of help for theaffected victims. They will be instrumental in guiding the externaltask forces during relief and rescue phase because of their awarenessof local geography. They can also be helpful in establishing acommunication link with the external rescue agencies.Livelihood GenerationAs explained above the livelihood is worst affected by the disasterand hence the people are in dire need of financial relief. Thegovernment at this juncture needs to generate the livelihoodopportunities. The MGNREGA programme can be extended toprovide livelihood wherein the locals can be employed inreconstruction activities. This will discourage residents from out-migration. In order to encourage people to generate more employmentopportunities themselves, the locals can be given micro loans withvery low interest rates. Finally, the farmers who have lost their cropsneeds to be compensated for their loss and they can be given seedsat a very low cost if they want to sow again.Redefining Development ProgrammesThe government seriously needs to mull over its current definitionof development. It has been blindly imitating other statesdevelopmental programmes without even recognising itscompatibility with states’ topography. As mentioned above, in thebeginning, the government can take lessons from Bhutan’sdevelopmental model where it has tried to maintain ecologicalbalance and development. The state must promote its tourism,horticulture, crafts, medicinal raw material and agroforestry avenuesrather than haphazardly implementing the infrastructural projects.Moreover, the infrastructure activities need to be regulated and theconstruction activities must align themselves with indigenousconstruction models, which are more sustainable to the topography.

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