Impact of flood on the rural areas of Kottayam Town.

 

Introduction

Floods are the most frequent type of disaster worldwide. It can strike anywhere and anytime .Although floods can be predicted, they often cause massive damage and destruction of property as most urban communities are located near water. Floods are one of the most common hazards in the United States. Flood effects can be local, impacting a neighbourhood or community, or very large, affecting entire river basins and multiple states.

However, not all floods are alike, while some floods developed slowly, sometimes over a period of days; flash floods develop quickly, sometimes in just a few minutes and without any visible Floods have large social consequences for communities and individuals. As most people are well aware,  the immediate impacts of flooding include , loss of human life , damage to property,  destruction of crops , loss of livestock , and deterioration of health conditions owing to water borne diseases .Flood is an excess of water or mud on land that is normally dry . A flood is a condition that occurs when water overflows the artificial or natural boundaries of a stream, river or other body of water into dry land. Floods often happen due to heavy rainfall. Signs or rain sources such as coasts and rivers.

There are three common types of flood.

·        Flash floods are caused by rapid and excessive rainfall that raises water heights quickly, and rivers, streams, channels or roads may be overtaken.

·        River floods are caused when consistent rain or snow melt forces a river to exceed capacity.

·        Coastal floods are caused by storms surges associated with tropical cyclones and tsunami.

Flooding of urban areas can result in significant damage to private property, including homes and businesses .Losses occur due to damage to both the structure and contents of buildings.

Insurance of the structure and its contents against flooding can reduce the impacts of floods on individuals.

Title of the study

The present study is entitled as The Impact of flood on the rural areas of Kottayam town.

Statement of the problem.

Flood may be caused by the failure of some dam, with a sudden release of huge amount of water, causing considerable damage to life and property. The study aims to identify the impact of flood on rural areas of Kottayam town.

Objectives of the study

The objectives of studying the impact of flood in rural areas of Kottayam town are as follows:

·        To find out the potential impact of flood on people property, natural environment and health.

·        To check the effectiveness of warning systems and emergency communications during flood.

·        To identify the effectiveness of the government intervention during flood.

Methodology

Survey method was adopted to study the impact of flood in the rural areas of Kottayam town. The study consists of a questionnaire containing 25 questions related to the topic. Most of the questions were having yes or no as options.

Major findings

·        From the study it is clear that 98% of the people are affected by in Kottayam Town.

·        88% of the people had different kind of losses due to flood.

·        90% of the people received warnings in advance and only 80% of the people were ready to move away from their homes.

·        95% of the people moved to government initiated relief camps but only 12% of them got individual help from the government.

 

Suggestions

·        Government should conduct awareness programs on the impact of flood.

·        Advice people to adopt Planting vegetation to retain excess water. Improve flood warning mechanisms to reduce the impact of human life.

·        Create floodplains and overflow areas for rivers.

·        Drill education should be introduced in collaboration with concerned authorities.

Conclusion

The findings emphasize that the awareness of flood is not satisfactory and there is a severe need for proper warning mechanisms. The government must ensure there is a quality building of dams to prevent flood.

In short we cannot prevent natural causes like rain and melting of glaciers however we can stop the man-made causes like breaking of dams, poor drainage systems, installing warning system and more.