Strengthening disaster resilience in a coastal city: a case of Pedda Jalaripeta, Visakhapatnam

Abstract

For generations, cyclones and tidal surges have frequently devastated lives and property in coastal areas. India is one of the most disaster-prone countries in Asia, therefore it is important to know how its disaster reduction strategies are organised and planned. Cyclone disasters that affect millions of people, destroy homesteads and livelihoods are common in the coastal region of India. In that perspective, a spatially explicit risk assessment is an essential step towards targeted disaster risk reduction. This study explores vulnerability to cyclone hazards and understand how the coastal communities in Visakhapatnam deal with the continuous threats of cyclones. As a case study, this study investigates communities that were affected by the severe tropical cyclone Hud Hud in 2014, covering 2500 households from ward 19 of Visakhapatnam. The survey method incorporated household based questionnaire techniques and community based focus group discussions. The pre-event situation highlights that the affected communities were physically vulnerable due to the strategic locations of the cyclone shelters nearer to those with social supreme status and the location of their houses in relatively low-lying lands. The victims were also socioeconomically vulnerable considering the high rate of illiteracy, larger family size, no ownership of land, and extreme poverty. They were mostly day labourers and fishermen. Post-event situation reveals that the victims’ houses and livelihoods were severely damaged or destroyed. Most victims were forced to shift their occupations and many became unemployed. They also became heavily dependent on microcredits and other forms of loans. A significant number of people were displaced in the affected areas. However, women and children are affected more despite the modification of traditional hierarchies during cyclone periods. Instinctive survival strategies and intra-community cooperation improve coping post cyclone. This study recommends that disaster reduction programmes encourage cyclone mitigation while being aware of localised realities, endogenous risk analyses, and coping and adaptation of affected communities (as active survivors rather than helpless victims)