Introduction
Disproportionate and too much water flow in the rivers in the monsoon season is the main cause of floods generally. Heavy rain in areas with less or no drainage system gets highly affected. These floods may cause due to the ice melting on the mountain glaciers which may provide the river with a rich volume of water which would generally be much in excess than its carrying and containing capacity. Natural Calamities of all kinds such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes create a lot of destruction and mayhem in our lives. Floods are such calamities which are known to being such miseries to people which cannot be easily repaired. And the worst part is that in India these floods are recurring in nature and they leave our cities and villages in wrecks and the citizens marooned with nothing to survive on and this happens every year.
Reasons of floods
The frequent occurrence of these floods in India is due to 3 major reasons.
- India’s location in the Monsoon region
- The western plains of the north and,
- Extensive expanse of hilly area in the North East and North.
The north eastern and northern India are just located in the center of the Monsoon belt therefore experiences heavy rainfall annually. These continuous rains cause a number of rivers and streams of the north to overs pill which results in the flood of the areas lying low of the plains of Brahmaputra and Gangetic. It is a well-known fact that global warming is the main cause of melting of ice in the river which creates havoc. The latest example is of the floods of the year 2004 in July in Assam which immensely affected the people and it was due to global warming. In the past there have been heavy floods in the sub-Himalayan plains. When the tributaries of big rivers such as Bramhapurta and Ganga overflow, they cause immense suffering to the people of these regions
Consequences
The consequences of floods are beyond explaining in words. Loss of property, life, houses, cattle, crops is simply incalculable. And when the backwardness and poverty adds to it, it just turns out to be devastating. In the floods of July 2004, lakhs of hectares of land was under floods due to which a lot of people were stranded and had no houses to live. Their cattle and their belongings all got washed off. Many villages were even submerged and the occupants literally had to run away for their safety and security. Properties get destroyed, crops get devastated, and roads, bridges and communication channels are all interrupted. And in addition to all this, water borne diseases crop up such as typhoid, cholera etc.
Measures by the Government
There are certain relief measures that the Government undertakes as soon as the flood occurs. These are long term and short term measures. Long term relief measures consist of free distribution of seeds, easy grant of loans and reimbursement for the loss of cattle and crops. While short term methods include free supply of medicines, clothes and food and putting up of relief camps in the flood affected areas.
Conclusion
As a matter of fact, the relief measures are inadequate and are often reached to the people very late. The Government should take strong preventive actions such as building the reservoirs and, creation of river banks, launching river-valley projects etc. only then the menace in India causes due to floods can be reduced.