Urban Flooding and Sediment Management – A Critical Perspective for Urban Planning in Tropical Regions
Dr. (Cdr.) Arnab Das
Founder and Director, MRC, Pune
Romit Rajendra Kaware
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi
Key Highlights
- Urban flooding has become a serious menace across multiple urban centers in the country.
- Global climate change alters weather patterns, leading to more frequent high-intensity rainfall events within shorter durations.
- A significant factor contributing to urban flooding in Indian cities is the insufficient drainage infrastructure.
- While large-scale dams limit nutrient deposition through seasonal flooding, they protect riverside settlements from severe floods.
Election times are here now and the silent citizens have a chance to voice their concerns. Urbanization is a sign of prosperity in the conventional sense and more and more aspirational middle class are moving towards the urban centers to be counted with their fellow dwellers. This socio-economic trend is very hard to regulate, but this will lead to serious socio-cultural and socio-political catastrophe. Every trend must be understood and managed in all its dimensions. India saw a massive urbanization trend post the liberalization in 1991. The doors were opened, not just to the western Multi-National Companies (MNCs), but also to the western ideas across multiple dimensions. The traditional wisdom of over 10,000 years of civilizational legacy, was replaced with western centric concepts. Urban planning also went the western ways. One serious aspect is the tropical conditions, that we live in. However, the unique tropical characteristics, get completely overlooked in our policy making and strategic discourse. As climate change triggered extreme events, this is only going to get worse. The government is also looking at massive investments in creating urban centers with so-called modern infrastructure, however the recurring natural disasters are becoming a serious threat to such big-ticket investments.
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Dr. (Cdr.) Arnab Das
Founder and Director, MRC, Pune
Dr. (Cdr) Arnab Das, Director and Founder of MRC, Pune. Dr Das is an ex Naval officer with 2 decades of active services and PhD holder from IIT Delhi with specialization in Underwater Acoustics. He has worked on several projects and has a plethora of publications to his credit.
Romit Rajendra Kaware
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi
Romit Rajendra Kaware is a recent graduate from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering. Currently, he is serving as a research fellow at MRC. His primary focus during his fellowship is on scientific research in structures and materials, as it enhances comprehension of the methodologies employed in constructing resilient infrastructure. Romit is deeply enthusiastic about applying his expertise in civil engineering to the maritime sector to foster sustainable development for our ecological resources.