The damages from climatic extremes in India: do disaster-specific and generic adaptation measures matter?

Abstract

The damages due to climatic extremes have gone up over the years, particularly in developing nations like India. Disaster-specific risk reduction measures have been adopted at both individual and policy levels to reduce potential impacts. At the same time, a variety of generic adaptation activities have also been undertaken. However, there is inconclusive empirical evidence on the effectiveness of these interventions in reducing damages from climatic extremes, especially for the developing nations. This study, therefore, examines the influence of disaster-specific and generic adaptation measures in reducing the damages resulting from the climate extremes like cyclones and floods in India. A district-level analysis was carried out for the state of Odisha, India from 1999 to 2008 using fixed effects for OLS and negative binomial models. Controlling for the influence of exposure and population, three major findings emerge: (1) households and policy makers have learned from the previous disaster experiences, i.e. there is a ‘learning effect’, (2) the disaster risk management programme undertaken by the government has reduced the damages from climate extremes, and (3) generic adaptation interventions are helpful. Since the frequency and intensity of these events are likely to increase because of climate change, these results have policy implications in the context of reducing potential impacts now and in the foreseeable future.