Behind the unprecedented pre-monsoon devastation in Assam

Behind the unprecedented pre-monsoon devastation in Assam

Subject : Geography

Section : Climatology

Context : unprecedented pre-monsoon devastation in Assam

Concept:

• While the monsoons are yet to arrive, Assam has already been beset by floods and landslides that have left 15 people dead and more than 7 lakh affected.
• The hill district of Dima Hasao, in particular, has been ravaged by flash floods and landslides, with connectivity to the rest of the state snapped.

Factors.

1. Extraordinarily acute pre-monsoon rains. While the average rainfall for the period of March 1 to May 20 in Assam is 434.5 mm, the corresponding number for this year is 719 mm. That amounts to a 65 percent excess
2. Changes in “rainfall intensity, arrival and departure times are attributed to climate change.
3. Cause of the increase in landslides is blamed on the undesirable, unpragmatic, unplanned structural intervention on the fragile landscape of hills.
4. Thus there is a need for the construction to be tuned to the ecological fragility of the region keeping traditional knowledge systems in mind and involving the local community to build sustainable infrastructure.