A flooded Bengaluru reminds us of Indian cities' lack of preparation

The money spent by the cities for flood is often far less than needed and since the buy-in from the public is weak, the effectiveness of the projects is shallow

A remarkable book, Cities and Flooding, written by a World Bank team of authors led by Abhas Jha noted presciently in its conclusion “Urban flood risk management then becomes an iterative process, with a long-term target to be approached through a series of steps”.

The authors were suggesting that no matter how serious the episode of a flood, it could be forgotten in less than three years after it happens. The implication is Bengaluru may be reeling under a flood in 2022, but unless there is “Ongoing communication (to) counter the tendency of people to forget about flood risk”, by