Overpopulation and Its Association With Natural Disasters

Abstract

With a population of over a billion, India is facing the challenges of overpopulation is making the country prone to natural disasters. focus of this chapter is the Indian Tsunami which occurred on 26th December 2004 in the Cuddalore district of State of Tamil Nadu and caused massive loss of life and devastation of property. From this case study it is evident that the first priority for India is to control its population growth so that the environment is protected from the adverse effects of overexploitation. Next is to establish a warning system which covers both its coasts on the east and west side and can readily alert the inhabitants with regard to a potential tsunami. Community based tsunami education, proper consideration to local culture during recovery and resettlement of communities, addressing basic issue of earthquake safety in buildings and establishment of a buffer zone on coast, all these measures would help in minimizing the impact of tsunami waves.