Drought mitigation: Critical analysis and proposal for a new drought policy with special reference to Gujarat (India)

Drought is a unique natural hazard which through its multi-faceted characteristics causes damage to ecology and economy. Mitigation of drought requires a dedicated policy involving precautionary and combative measures. The state of Gujarat in India possesses an arid to semi-arid climate and suffers from recurrent droughts and perennial water scarcity problem. Droughts in Gujarat not only impart stress on the water resources but also on agriculture, economy and socio-cultural spheres. Although several policies have been prescribed and numerous measures have been prescribed to counter droughts and to reduce drought impacts, drought still revisits Gujarat in every three years and creates havoc to peoples' life. This paper reviews the existing policies, strategies and measures employed by different countries in the world, the Government of India in general and in the State of Gujarat, in specific. The study has revealed several drawbacks in the existing drought mitigation policies in Gujarat. On the basis of findings, it opines that the drought mitigation measures deployed in the state are inadequate, ineffective and mostly reactive in nature. Shortcomings are also noticed in the coordination between the central and state governments regarding implementation of the drought mitigation measures. It has been advocated in this paper that evolution of the national and state-level drought policies should be an ongoing process, with continuous post-drought assessment of their efficiency and subsequent revision and up-gradation, whenever required. A new model for proactive drought management has been proposed in this article that will focus on building a resilient and drought-proof society in the country and particularly in Gujarat.