Work

From single to compound hazards: how flood and drought vulnerabilities have intensified across India

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Floods and droughts are intensifying and increasingly co-occurring under hydroclimatic variability, yet vulnerability assessments typically consider these extremes in isolation, masking compounded risks. Here, we develop a unified framework to quantify district-scale vulnerability to floods, droughts, and their combined impacts across India. Central to the framework is the Multi-Hazard Vulnerability Index (MHVI), supported by a bivariate vulnerability classification that explicitly captures overlapping susceptibilities to opposing hydrological extremes. Applying the framework for 2001 and 2011 reveals a substantial escalation of vulnerability, with highly flood-vulnerable districts increasing from 16.5% to 21.4% and drought-vulnerable districts from 10.6% to 18.1%, alongside a growing concentration of multi-hazard hotspots in eastern and northern India. The results demonstrate pronounced spatial and temporal shifts in compound vulnerability, highlighting regions where development gains are increasingly exposed to multi-hazard risks. The scalable framework offers a robust basis for risk-informed adaptation planning, resource prioritization, and climate-resilient disaster risk reduction.

Source: npj natural hazards.

DOI: 10.1038/s44304-026-00264-x

Authors: Priyanka Tripathy, Dev Anand Thakur, Vittal Hari, Mohit Prakash Mohanty

Institutions: Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, University of Alabama, Nalanda University, Indian Institute of Technology Dhanbad

Language: English

Topic: Flood Risk Assessment and Management

Subfield: Global and Planetary Change

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Climate action, Sustainable cities and communities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,090