Disaster Management Ch - 4 Floods Social Studies - Disaster Management Ch - 4 Floods

Read the following newspaper reports.

Assam Several embankments on the main Brahmaputra River have been breached, with water engulfing more than 600 villages. About 30.000 hectares of crops were also submerged. All rivers in Assam are flowing at dangerous levels threatening several new areas, officials said. The Eastern district of Dhemaji was among the worst affected by a breach in the embankment, with at least 2.50.000 people stranded by the rising waters. Uttarkashi Heavy monsoon rains have triggered flash floods in parts of Northern and Western India. A cloudburst that hit nearby Uttarkashi district created a torrent of muddy water that swept away at least six villages while flowing down the mountains, said DK Gupta, from the state control room. Maharashtra Flooding in the Western state of Maharashtra where a few cases of cholera have been reported close to Mumbai. Himachal Pradesh More than 100 people were reported to have died in flash floods in the Northern state of Himachal Pradesh earlier this week. The river Sutlej, which runs through the state, was reported to have risen to more than 40 feet above its not level in some places. Bihar Water from two of India's biggest rivers-the Brahmaputra and the Ganges-has engulfed thousands of villages. According to some estimates. nearly half a million people have been made homeless in the Northern states of Bihar and Assam.

Identify the states and areas that are vulnerable to floods by the following rivers
(i) Brahmaputra
(ii) Ganga
(iii) Sutlej

Given below are the names of common rivers in India. Against each river, tick in the appropriate box to indicate whether it floods frequently or not.

River	Floods frequently	Does not flood frequently
GODAVARI
BRAHMAPUTRA
MAHANADI
CAUVERY
GANGA
SUTLEJ

Read the newspaper extract of 2002 below
In Assam, soldiers have helped rescue thousands of people marooned in remote villages, and more troops have been put on 'standby' for relief operations. An army spokesman said that disaster management squads in speedboats and helicopters were also on standby. This is just the beginning of India's monsoon season, but the rains have been unusually heavy so far.
(i) Find out which are the agencies and organisations that play an important role in flood preparedness and response.
(ii) Make a list of their local offices and people heading them. Ask your teacher to contact Red Cross or any of the other agencies to come and tell you how they prepare for floods and other disasters.

What should a community do in order to be prepared before every flood season?

Suggest measures to prevent damage from frequent flooding.
Two measures have been suggested, add more.
(i) Raising the height of public and private building in low lying areas.
(ii) De-silting river beds regularly.

How can communities prepare to face floods?