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Extreme rainfall and vulnerability assessment: case study of Uttarakhand rivers

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Abstract

The torrential rains in June 2013 combined with melting of snow caused voluminous floods in the rivers of Uttarakhand and subsequently triggered widespread mud, landslides and debris deposition. The event caused instability of the channel by shifting the banks. Erosion rendered many locations along the banks vulnerable to economic and human loss. The shifts in reaches are calculated by digitizing the bank line using satellite imageries of year 2005, 2010 and 2015. The extent and magnitude of risks have been assessed based on information of past events, rapid field assessments, current mitigation measures and interactions with the locals. The findings from these interactions, and secondary data based on geospatial analysis of bank line changes have been used in the identification of vulnerable reaches along the major rivers. Criteria to identify the vulnerable reaches are based on risk, exposure and hazards in that area. The magnitude of risks due to flood hazards on various exposures along the riverbank is calculated based on qualitatively derived scores. River basins focusing on rainfall, topography, drainage pattern, soil, landslide and exiting infrastructure in relation to vulnerability of the region using GIS data are discussed in details. A fuller understanding will enable decision makers towards more efficient resources management for prevention and protection of river banks due to flood events. In addition to this, an official online decision support system (www.urmis.dhi-india.com) with collaborating partners and organizations for relevant data, information and document has been created.

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Acknowledgement

This work has been carried out as preliminary part of the project funded by World Bank for “River Morphological Analysis and design for River Training and Bank Protection Works in Uttarakhand state for Project Implementation Unit TA and CBDRM”, Uttarakhand Disaster Recovery Project (URDP). With the grace and guidance of the spirit, we express gratitude to the Government of Uttarakhand, World Bank, UDRP, CWC, IMD and HEPs. We are deeply grateful various experts from IIRS Dehradun and IIT Roorkee for their insights during the project. Last but not least, our thanks go to WRD team members especially, Gorm Jeppesen (HoD,WRD), Lalit Monhan, Apuraban, Nilav and Amit (HoD, IT) for sharing their wisdom during the course of this work.

Funding

Funding was provided by DHI India.

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  1. DHI (India) Water and Environment Pvt Ltd, 206, Ground Floor, Okhla Industrial Estate, Phase-III, New Delhi, 110020, India

    Tushar Kanti Ghosh, Flemming Jakobsen, Madhu Joshi & Kuldeep Pareta

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  1. Tushar Kanti Ghosh
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  2. Flemming Jakobsen
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Correspondence to Madhu Joshi.

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Ghosh, T.K., Jakobsen, F., Joshi, M. et al. Extreme rainfall and vulnerability assessment: case study of Uttarakhand rivers. Nat Hazards 99, 665–687 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-019-03765-3

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