The Southern Indian State Kerala has witnessed unprecedented and devastating floods resulting in the death of hundreds of people, and hundreds and thousands of people have been moved to the relief and rehabilitation camps.
The situation could have been avoided, or rather its intensity could have been minimised, if the major dams in the state like Idukki and Idamalayar could have released water much before the flood like situation emerged than at the eleventh hour when Kerala is in the throes of heavy flooding.
It is reported that an assessment by the federal government earlier this year found that Kerala was among the 10 states most vulnerable to flooding. But the state’s administration is accused of not having taken the necessary steps to lower risk from flooding.
According to some experts, the central government also needs to be blamed, because Kerala gets no early flood warning from the Central Water Commission (CWC), which is the only government agency authorised to do so. CWC has no flood forecasting sites also.
The rainfall during this monsoon has been exceptionally very high which recorded more than 37% excess rainfall in just two-and-a-half months, while in the past that has happened through the monsoon, which usually lasts about four months.
According to the Kerala state government sources “It is a calamity that has happened after 100 years and no one had predicted this amount of rain. That’s why there was no preparation for this level of disaster.”
But According to the environmentalists, the disaster in Kerala occurred due to deforestation and urbanisation. Some wetlands and lakes that acted as natural safeguards against floods have disappeared due to rampant urbanisation and construction of infrastructure.