Major cities of India are becoming vulnerable to flood conditions. Discuss.

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Ghissu Editorial · Accepted Answer

Major Indian cities are becoming flood-prone because heavier, shorter rain meets encroached lakes and wetlands, concrete sprawl, outdated drains and growing populations on flood plains, under fragmented governance. The 2015 Chennai floods caused about $3 billion in damage.

**Introduction**

The 2015 Chennai floods caused about $3 billion in damage (NIDM), after Mumbai (2005) and Srinagar (2014). In July 2016 Gurugram was paralysed by a few hours of rain. Urban flood risk rises where heavier rain meets dense exposure and weak drainage.

**Why Major Cities Are Becoming Flood-Prone**

SKETCH: venn | Urban Flood Risk
a: Extreme rainfall
b: Dense exposure
c: Weak drainage
overlap: Flood disaster

1. **Heavier, shorter rain**: Extreme bursts like Mumbai's 944 mm at Santacruz on 26 July 2005 are becoming more frequent and overwhelm old drainage.
2. **Lost lakes and wetlands**: Chennai built over its tanks and the Pallikaranai marsh, and Bengaluru and Hyderabad encroached their lakes.
3. **Concrete and choked drains**: Paving cuts infiltration, and Mumbai's colonial-era drains were designed for only 25 mm an hour.
4. **Backwater**: High tides in Mumbai and Chennai and a swollen Jhelum in Srinagar block outfalls just when rain peaks.

**Dimensions of Growing Flood Vulnerability**

1. **Rising exposure**: Urban India reached 31% of the population in Census 2011, much of it on low-lying flood plains like the Adyar's.
2. **The poor and infrastructure**: Slums along drains and riverbanks suffer first, with disease following, and Chennai airport's closure in 2015 showed how floods become economic shocks.
3. **Governance lags**: NDMA's 2010 urban flood guidelines remain weakly applied, though Mumbai's post-2005 pumping stations show investment helps.

**Conclusion**

Indian cities are growing flood-prone largely through their own growth, with climate change sharpening the hazard. Restoring water bodies, designing drains for new rainfall and planning on flood maps can make them resilient, in line with SDG 11.

Major cities of India are becoming vulnerable to flood conditions. Discuss.

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