Abstract
Climate change and the associated phenomenon have put major cities and their surroundings at multi-dimensional risk patterns because of hazards, with flooding being a major hazard in the Asian Peninsula. With authorities such as National Disaster Management Authority, India reporting multiple urban local bodies to be under flood risk, it is essential to prioritize flood risk management in the urban planning process in India. Kochi, the commercial capital of Kerala, India has been frequently affected by flooding events. Various factors have been attributed to the flood risk of Kochi Corporation, which requires validation. Against this backdrop, the study focuses on comprehending significant factors attributed to the vulnerability of settlements in the study region and promoting a way forward based on lessons learned and good practices across the world. This is achieved by analyzing significant databases and computations using GIS. The research outcome would help define strategies for sustainable land-use-based development, promoting effective flood management in the Kochi urban area.
TopBackground
The world has been urbanizing at higher rate post industrialization. Urbanization refers to the process of migration of people from rural settlements to the centers of growth. Reports suggest that these centers are responsible for 80% of the world’s GDP. These growth patterns were complemented by globalization policies such as the 1991 liberalization, privatization and globalization policy of India that opened doors for more cities and urban agglomeration. United Nations Report of 2018 on global demographics suggests that at present, 55% of the global populations live in the cities, and is expected to rise to 68% by 2050. The present statistics show that these trends have been similar in all countries, irrespective of their income level-based cohorts. Figure 1 depicts the present urban population and the projected urban population by 2050. The report reiterates that the major growth centers by 2050 would be the lower cohorts, namely low middle income and, low-income countries, owing to the rising market trends (UNDESA, 2018).
Figure 1.
Present and projected urban population of various cohorts (UNDESA, 2018)
Key Terms in this Chapter
Vulnerability: Vulnerability refers to the characteristics and circumstances of a community, system or asset that make it susceptible to the damaging effects of a hazard ( UNISDR, 2009 AU92: The citation "UNISDR, 2009" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ). Vulnerability involves a combination of factors that determine the degree to which a person or community, livelihood, assets, ecosystem are put at risk by a discrete and identifiable event in the nature.
Risk: Risk is defined as the potential disaster losses, in lives, health status livelihoods, assets and services, which could occur to a particular community or a society over some specified future time period. Disaster risk signifies the possibility of adverse effects in the future ( UNISDR, 2009 AU91: The citation "UNISDR, 2009" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Resilience: Resilience refers to the ability of a system, community or society exposed to hazards to resist, absorb, accommodate to and recover from the effects of a hazard in a timely and efficient manner, including through the preservation and restoration of its essential basic structures and functions ( UNISDR, 2009 AU90: The citation "UNISDR, 2009" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Disaster: A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society which involves widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources is known as disaster ( UNISDR, 2009 AU86: The citation "UNISDR, 2009" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Climate Change: The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines climate change as a change of climatic conditions, attributed directly or indirectly to the human activities, that affects the global atmospheric constituents, and results in natural variations over comparable time periods. Climate change increases uncertainty, which increases risk patterns.
Hazard: Hazards refer to a process or activity that may cause damage to human life, socio-economic disruptions, or environmental damages. There are three criteria for hazard classification, which was established by the working group of Hazard Report, UNDRR (2020) AU88: The citation "UNDRR (2020)" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. has published three criteria for hazards: 1) the hazard has the potential to impact a community, 2) proactive and reactive measures exist for the hazard, and 3) the hazard has measurable spatial and temporal components ( UNDRR, 2020 AU89: The citation "UNDRR, 2020" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Disaster Risk Management: Disaster risk management is the systematic process of using administrative directives, organizations, and operational skills and capacities to implement strategies, policies, and improved coping capacities in order to lessen the adverse impacts of hazards and the possibility of disaster. The management is a complex process which includes mitigation, prevention, preparedness and capacity building ( UNISDR, 2009 AU87: The citation "UNISDR, 2009" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).