Only one-third Indians covered by early warning systems for floods: Report

The states which are struggling with floods this year, including Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, are among the states with high exposure to floods but the lowest availability of warning systems

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Only one-third of the Indian population is covered by flood early warning systems (EWSs), a report released recently said. This is against two-thirds of the total population being exposed to "extreme flood events". It added that 12 states in India are currently highly exposed to extreme flood events, but only three of these have a high availability of such systems. Eight of these have low availability.

According to the "Strengthening India's Disaster Preparedness with Technology: A Case for Effective Early Warning Systems" report released by the Council of Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), it is "imperative for Indian states to step up climate action and build resilience by investing in early warning systems and multi-hazard early warning systems".

The states struggling with floods this year, including Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, are among the states with high exposure to floods but the lowest availability of warning systems.

According to The Economic Times (ET), the report highlights the need for greater investment in EWSs and involving local communities.

Vishwas Chitale, senior programme lead at CEEW, told ET that only 10 per cent of the overall disaster management budget is allocated for disaster preparedness, which needs to be increased.

"If you invest more in preparedness, your loss and damage will reduce and thus your response and recovery budget will come down," Chitale said.

Further, the study found that 14 of the 32 states exposed to floods have a "high" resilience because of the availability, accessibility and effectiveness of early warning systems. Sixteen states have a "moderate" resilience.

This comes in the backdrop of heavy rains and floods wreaking havoc across North India. The events have left 90 people dead till now, with Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand being the worst hit.

In the case of cyclones, however, India is better prepared. The CEEW report showed that 25 per cent of the population is exposed to cyclones and their impact. However, 100 per cent of the exposed population is covered by cyclone EWS.