Climate Change and Incidence of Lightning in Odisha: An Exploratory Research

Abstract

Climate change has brought in frequent incidence of disasters and lightning is one of them. The geographic location of Odisha is vulnerable to frequent disasters and every year it faces many such disasters. It affects the poor and marginalized the most and as it is primarily an agrarian society and as most of the population are engaged in agriculture, they get exposed to lightning while working in the paddy field. It brings death or make people disabled in many sense challenging the survival of the families who operates at subsistence level. The deaths occurring due to lightning was never covered under the ex-gratia payment and the contribution of academics to drive home the fact that these are celestial phenomenon and needs to be treated as disasters have made the policy makers to introduce compensation since 2010-11. This has brought in some relief to the affected families. The intervention of the state of Odisha to address the vulnerability of people in cyclone, floods and heat wave is appreciated globally and similar interventions are required to address the vulnerability of the people to lightning. The early warning system in lightning is introduced in Odisha in 2019 and this has brought in less number of deaths. This calls for further research and progressive policy interventions, so that the lives and livelihoods of the people can be saved.