India experiments with parametric insurance to mitigate costs of disasters

India experiments with parametric insurance to mitigate costs of disasters

India has experienced the third most number of natural disaster events in the world between 2000 and 2019 and it has been predicted that the frequency and intensity of natural disasters will continue to increase leading to huge losses and damages that the states may be unable to pay for.

India is cautiously experimenting with a novel tool such as parametric insurance as a solution to to help bridge this finance gap. While regular insurance schemes are based on indemnity or evaluate losses after a disaster event, parametric insurance uses a predetermined set of parameters. When these parameters are met, a payment is released immediately.

Members of organisations such as Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) in Gujarat are also trying out the ongoing parametric heat insurance scheme for ongoing heatwave conditions. Besides SEWA, many other organisations are now trying to use the scheme in response to rising floods, heat stress, and loss of productivity in renewable energy plants.

However, the benefits of parametric insurance are limited by how risks and damages are perceived and India’s experience with parametric insurance is still a work-in-progress. Experts say it must complement existing climate adaptation strategies, and not replace them.

At present finance for disasters is managed by the National or State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and international aid. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) contributes between 75 to 90 percent of funds from the central government, while the rest has to be taken care by the state government. However, there are frequent delays from the central government in release of funds (Mongabay, India). 

A newly developed Landslide Susceptibility Map identifies Eastern ghats at the risk of landslides

Landslides cause enormous losses to life and property and the economic losses from landslides are estimated to reach between 1-2 percent of the gross national product in many developing countries.

Researchers at the Department of Civil Engineering and Yardi School of Artificial Intelligence at the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi have mapped out landslide zones across India to bring out a India Landslide Susceptibility Map, available on open access. The map classifies 4.75 percent of India as very highly susceptible to landslides, using a five-point scale from very low to very high susceptibility. Landslide susceptibility represents the potential of slope failure for given geo environmental conditions.

Approximately 420,000 square kilometres, or 12.6 percent of the land area (excluding snow-covered regions) in India is prone to landslides and as high as 50 percent of this area is located in the North East Himalayas, including the Darjeeling and Sikkim. 

The current study lists Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, Goa, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Kerala as the 10 Indian states most likely to witness landslides. It also identifies landslide-prone zones in the Eastern Ghats, which, so far, have not been included in government landslide records or India’s official landslide susceptibility map. (The Scroll).

MGNREGA helps improve livelihoods and forest cover in Uttarakhand

A recent study in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh found that employment generation schemes like MGNREGA  helped to generate big gains in both in enhancing livelihood opportunities while improving the environment through increasing forest cover. The impact of MGNREGA led to a high win-win outcome for livelihood and forest cover when job days crossed 1210. Apart from livelihood schemes, strengthening local decision making based on collective action could also help livelihood and forest outcomes, the study found.

Joint positive outcomes were more likely in areas where marginalised groups had histories in engaging with collective action, of mutually exchanging labour for ​​the purposes of forestry, agriculture, construction and cultural activities. 

The researchers used 36 variables covering socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of local communities, institutional dynamics of forest governance and plantation activity, and the biophysical characteristics of 377 plantations in Kangra district as part of the study. Interpretable machine learning (IML) was used in the study to create predictive insights into identifying variables which produced win-win outcomes for both livelihoods and forest cover, as well as win-lose and lose-lose outcomes.

For a win-win outcome, where the model showed improvements in forest cover from tree plantations as well as improvements in livelihood, the presence of Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes were found to be the biggest influencing factor, followed by level of education and number of work days under MGNREGA (Mongabay, India).

Rajasthan farmers collectively turn a desolate piece of land in the Thar desert into an agricultural hub 

Rabriyawas in Rajasthan has now become an inspiration for others to follow. Perched on the edge of the Thar desert, two hours from Jodhpur, land here was naturally fertile, but water woes, overexploitation and use of chemical fertilisers had rendered the land useless. 

Farmers in Rajasthan decided to do something about it and working hand in hand with an NGO, they began soil testing to make informed decisions. They also understood the need to conserve water and be more judicious in its application, and 1,200 farmers slowly subjected over 2,200 hectares to micro irrigation.

Yields increased and profits soared as a result of this and farmers also adopted other regenerative farming practices like field bunds, blocks, and community plantations by planting over 5,000 trees.  They also replaced chemical inputs with bio-inputs like neem oil and yellow sticky traps—made by local self-help groups (SHGs) and also started applying farmyard manure to the land every three years to boost microorganism growth. Biodiversity of the region was revived and the region is today a thriving agricultural hub where farming incomes have doubled for over 20 percent of the farmers in the region (Forbes India).

Women come together to plant mangroves to tackle cyclones in Sundarbans

Chargheri in Sundarbans was witnessing a rise in climate change events. As the global temperature increases, sea warming has also increased considerably. A warmer Bay of Bengal means more frequent and intensified cyclones forming and hitting the Sundarbans.

Broken embankments from climate-change-induced cyclones brought forth issues like degraded agricultural fields, migration, and loss of livelihood in the Sundarbans. This is when Umashankar Mondal, a geography teacher and a local of Chargheri, also known as ‘mangrove man’ understood the necessity of a mangrove plantation as a countermeasure. 

This is because mangroves create a natural barrier for high-speed wind during cyclones near the embankments. They also protect the clay from getting washed out during high tides due to their roots attaching to the soil while providing a breeding ground for the fish which helps sustain the livelihoods of the fishermen. 

He motivated an army of local women to plant mangroves and 500 women members, distributed over several nearby islands work tirelessly throughout the year to increase the mangrove cover. As high as 8.37 lakh mangroves have been planted since 2009. (Village Square). 

This is a roundup of important news updates from 16th June to 31st June, 2024. Read our policy updates here.