NEW DELHI: “Delhi and Mumbai are the most vulnerable state and union territory (UT) to natural disasters”, according to National Disaster Risk Index.
The index does not only talk about the possibility of a natural disaster but the economic vulnerability of the region and the steps taken by the administration to mitigate the risks.
Population, agriculture, livestock and environmental risk are the factors which are taken into account for ranking the states and UTs in the National Disaster risk index.
Maharashtra, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh are top three states in Disaster risk index followed by Rajasthan, Karnataka, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, and Bihar while those vulnerable to disasters like cyclones, landslides, and earthquakes, like Andhra Pradesh and hill states, are relatively lower in the index.
Some states have made significant progress in the disaster risk reduction by building resilient infrastructures and investing in the development and implementation of early warning systems.
This index is currently in a draft form made by the Union Home Ministry with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Last month a workshop was organized by National Disaster Management Authority, with help of United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), United Nation Development Programme (UNDP), and Unicef on the proposed national disaster database, and was attended by representatives from different state and central ministries.
A working paper prepared by the NDMA said India is vulnerable to more than 30 different types of disasters.
In 2015 and 2016, over 350 million people were affected across the country, and the damage to property in these two years alone has been estimated at over $4.4 billion.