The Exposure, Vulnerability, and Ability to Respond of Poor Households to Recurrent Floods in Mumbai

This paper examines poor households in
the city of Mumbai and their exposure, vulnerability, and
ability to respond to recurrent floods. The paper discusses
policy implications for future adaptive capacity,
resilience, and poverty alleviation. The study focuses
particularly on the poor households, which tend to have
greater exposure and vulnerability to floods and limited
ability to respond given the constraints on physical and
financial resources. The study seeks to understand the
implications of the fact that poor households are more
likely than non-poor households to be located in flood-prone
areas. The study used the land use maps for the selected
flood-prone areas to determine the extent and spread of poor
and non-poor households and other types of assets and
activities in areas with chronic and localized flooding.
Primary data were obtained through detailed household
surveys to understand the vulnerability and impacts of the
extreme floods of July 2005, recurrent floods and the
ability of households to respond and cope. The study
examined the option of relocation to flood-free areas and
identified factors that influence families’ decisions
regarding relocation. The study finds that a significantly
large proportion of poor households are located near areas
with chronic and localized flooding. These households are
either below the poverty line or have low incomes and reside
in informal settlements or old and dilapidated structures.
Future climate risks are likely to put greater burden on the
poor and push them further into poverty unless well directed
efforts are made to protect them.