Household vulnerability and resilience in flood hazards from disaster-prone areas of Punjab, Pakistan

An environmental variation has caused Pakistan an alarming portrait of vulnerability in flood disasters. The government has focused on a number of realistic actions, heartening insertion of disaster risk-lessening measure by local disaster management policies instead of conventional dealings of aid-based approach due to the destructive outcome of floods and other natural disasters. In this study, household vulnerability and resilience of flood disaster in three districts of Punjab province were detailed. Data of a sample of the 840 inhabitant respondents of flood-prone areas of three districts of Punjab, which were severely affected in flooding of 2010, were collected from household respondent by face-to-face meeting and from Provincial Disaster Management Authority Punjab. A subjective method was used in the study to weight the components of vulnerability and resilience. In the empirical finding, higher vulnerability and lower resilience to the flood were found in these study areas. Muzaffargarh and Rajanpur districts were more vulnerable (higher composite vulnerable index score) and less resilient (lower composite resilience index score) in contrast to Rahim Yar Khan. The mutual contribution of local and provincial disaster management authorities can play the significant role in reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience of the inhabitants of flood-prone areas through strengthening awareness and vigilance, training regarding improving capacity of building and lessening flood costs.