Tag:floods

India's next leap in disaster management should not simply be to predict disasters better. It should be to connect knowledge better, strengthen institutions and act earlier.

The combination of erratic rainfall and rising temperatures is expected to increase both drought and flood risks during the same season.

With 2026 designated the Year of Water, Blue Davos seeks to shift perceptions – elevating water from a peripheral issue to a core developmental and economic priority.

The 2025 monsoon season arrived with unusual ferocity, delivering 8 per cent more rainfall than the long-term average across the Indian subcontinent.

Long-term climate risk, particularly heat exposure, also carries socio-economic consequences, threatening jobs, livelihoods and economic growth if unchecked.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that floods significantly raise the risk of vector-borne, food-borne and water-borne diseases, urging communities to prevent mosquito bites, ensure food safety and use safe drinking water wherever possible.

As weather cleared briefly Sunday, rescue teams reached cut-off areas, airlifting aid to Sankhuwasabha and Dhankuta. Volunteers retrieved bodies as aid agencies coordinated emergency relief and logistical support.

But beyond the immediate destruction, most prominently over Dehradun on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday, new reports and expert commentary point to deeper systemic failures – in climate monitoring, disaster preparedness, and infrastructure planning – that are making the Himalayan state increasingly vulnerable.