Strategies for flood resilient planning: case of Supaul district in Bihar

Abstract

Flood in India has been an emerging issue since notable period of time. India is said to be a traditionally vulnerable country in terms of natural as well as man-made disaster because of its diverse and unique geo- climatic conditions. Areas which are prone to floods in the country are broadly categorized into three divisions such as Ganga Basin, the Brahmaputra and Barak Basins, and the Central Indian and Deccan Rivers Basins. Stiff terrain especially in Hindu Kush Himalayan Region makes the northeast region of Bihar more prone to floods. As per the report of The WorId Commission on Dams, 57 percent of India’s floodaffected population lives in Bihar and as per the State Water Resources department, 17.2 percent of the total flood prone area of the country lies in Bihar thus making it the most flood-prone state in India. Kosi river basin, a part of Ganga river system in Bihar, which passes through three countries i.e., China in the upper hill, Nepal in the middle or very steeper hill and India, North Bihar in the lower plain. This basin has the steepest terrain and has large number of river’s branches. In case of Kosi River 89% of its catchment area is flood prone. As per Water Resource Department (http://wrd.bih.nic.in/) it has been found that among 19 districts from north Bihar which are prone to flood, Supaul district is most prone to flood i.e. 79.8% of its geographical area. “Kosi River, a sorrow of Bihar, abruptly changes its course with abusive water stream. Being a higher elevation river, it carries high amount of silt which exceeds its water flow capacity. To sustain the livability and economic competitiveness in the region, building infrastructure flood resilient is an important need. Significance of this research is to, understand and evaluate the past flood events and present trends. This study will recommend strategies to propose flood resilient planning which would be implemented in flood-affected areas in Supaul with the support of public and government. The study will help policy makers to formulate policies for low lying areas and mitigate the adverse impact of flooding.