Floods , Rainwater Harvesting and the Plight of Assam.

A news in an extreme corner of a newspaper:

Source: India Today

The world is facing a growing problem with flooding due to climate change. In fact, floods are one of the most destructive natural disasters in the world, causing billions of dollars in damage and human losses every year.

The World Bank says that flooding costs $500 billion annually globally and has become one of the most common risks for businesses and households across the globe.

The primary causes of flooding include:

Sea level rise: The oceans are rising at an accelerated pace due to climate change, which threatens coastal communities worldwide. Sea levels have risen 13 inches over the past century, but this rate has increased by one-third over the past 20 years.

Drought: Drought is also a major contributor to flooding because it can lead to reduced water resources that cause rivers and streams to overflow their banks. And as temperatures continue to increase, droughts will become more frequent and severe. Drought has already caused several deadly floods in recent years — including Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and Hurricane Florence in 2018 — both of which resulted from prolonged periods of drought across North Carolina and South Carolina.

Heavy rain events: Heavy rainfall events can cause flash floods that overwhelm rivers, streams or creeks with fast-moving water that flows

The recent flood in Assam which almost got lost in news is an alarm bell for the country. The state has come under the grip of floods following heavy rains, which have wreaked havoc in many parts of the state. The government is trying its best to provide relief to the people affected by the floods and help them go back to their homes.

Source: Weather.com

But, unfortunately there is no media coverage for it. The media has never focused on the plight of Assam.

I am sharing the before and after images of the one of my favorite stations in NFR railway division.

New Haflong Station- Before

New Haflong Station- After

It really disappoints me that these Bollywood celeb toddlers receive more media coverage than natural calamities like floods in Assam and other similar incidents, especially in the context of climate change.

In a recent article in The Hindu, the author points out that Indians have little awareness of climate change. He says that this lack of awareness has led to a misunderstanding about the causes of floods in India.

He notes: "The problem is that Indians no longer view floods as a natural disaster."

As per my education and recent studies I find that the rainwater harvesting systems are a great option for flood-prone areas as they can help store water from rain, and then use this water in the future when needed.

Rainwater Harvesting in Farm lands

Rainwater harvesting has a long history in India. The ancient Indian civilization developed a sophisticated system of rainwater harvesting. The Indus Valley Civilization was a civilization that made extensive use of rainwater harvesting techniques throughout its region. They were so advanced that they even built reservoirs and water management systems beneath their cities.

Water Harvesting in Ancient India

There are several methods of rainwater harvesting which include:

1. Cisterns: These are the most commonly used systems for collecting rain water. They can be made of clay bricks, stones or even plastic sheets with ducts to direct the water into a tank or canal system.

2. Pipes: Rainwater pipes can be installed at different levels of your home where you want to collect rainwater from roofs and balconies as well as from other sources like ponds, lakes etc., as well as pipes that run through the main parts of your homes. go up to The water supply line where it flows to your home's storage tank

By using rainwater harvesting, we can reduce our carbon footprints by about 15% because the collected water does not enter surface water bodies, where it would otherwise evaporate into clouds, causing global warming, but rather that Lives on land where it can be used for irrigation.

I know mere this article cannot understand and help Assam people from Flood disaster but why not put our step forward and understand the importance of Disaster Management Why shall we wait for the day when water table has exhausted and there shall be considerable harsh acidic rain falling on our next gen

During lockdown when we vehicle had almost stopped plying on the roads the ozone on earth had healed with the good rate.

A News from Nasa Official Website during Global Lockdown

Our digital media must focus on states such as Assam and Bihar, where floods occur on an annual basis.

By such means, we can at least show our concern to the plight of people in such areas and make them feel integrated.

It's high time for our concerted effort to combat disasters and climate change by spreading awareness among people on Disaster Management and promoting environment friendly measures like Water harvesting.

"Our one small step towards the environment is a bigger step for humanity and our one small step towards Humanity is a bigger step for a global unity."