Climate Hazards and Vulnerability Atlas of India

Recently, India Meteorological Department (IMD) has released India’s first “Climate Hazards and Vulnerability Atlas of India”.

Key Findings of the Atlas Related to Cyclonic Events: West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district within which the larger share of the Sundarbans is located is impacted by cyclones most frequently among Indian districts.

• The return period of cyclonic storms in the district was 1.67 years on a scale of 1.5 to 60 years. Shorter return periods indicate more frequent cyclones.
• Severe Cyclonic Storms: Baleshwar in Orissa topped the list in terms of vulnerability to severe cyclonic storms. South 24 Parganas was the second-most vulnerable to all cyclones, and ranked third in terms of severe cyclonic storms.
• Cyclone Vulnerability: Purba Medinipur in West Bengal had the highest cyclone vulnerability in the country for cyclones of all intensities.
• Most of the coastal districts of the East Coast are highly vulnerable to cyclones. Around 4% of the districts and 7% of the population in India are highly vulnerable to cyclones.

Applications: It will act as a reference for impact-based warnings that IMD issues for various regions.

• It can be used to plan climate-resilient infrastructure.
• The atlas will provide valuable information on what kind of disasters are probable during construction in a coastal area.