2024 Bangladesh and India Floods

• Response and recovery in Bangladesh are complicated by political instability and reported widespread corruption, the devastating impacts of climate change, and high unemployment rates, especially among youth.
• Bangladesh’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, resigned and fled to India in early August after violent anti-government protests that left at least 300 people dead and thousands more injured. Economist and Noble Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus and several advisors were sworn in as Bangladesh’s interim government.
• The number of deaths is constantly changing as new areas become accessible or communication is restored. As of Aug. 27, at least 20 people have been killed in Bangladesh and 26 in India. As flood waters recede, there are fears that this number will increase.
• Close to 500,000 people are displaced, with most staying in evacuee relief camps. About 64,000 people in the Tripura region of India are staying in 300 relief camps, and 470,000 people in Bangladesh are staying in one of the almost 4,000 relief camps.
• One of the hardest-hit communities is Cox’s Bazar, home to nearly one million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, including 800,000 people living in the largest and densest refugee camp in the world, Kutupalong. This is an extremely vulnerable population, even without a climate disaster.
• A study by the World Bank said that annual river flooding affects about 3.5 million people in Bangladesh, which is considered “one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries.”
• The overall issue is not only the total amount of rain that has fallen but the timeframe and intensity during which it falls. At the halfway point in August, India was only 6% above average rainfall (23.1 inches versus 21.8 inches). However, Delhi has now set the record for the most rainfall days (measured at 0.09 of an inch or more of rain) in August since 2012. It is also the wettest August since 2014, with 11.5 inches recorded. Some areas received 4-7 inches in 24 hours when the latest floods started.
• Videos from prior flooding in Pakistan and AI-generated images are being shared on social media and attributed to Bangladesh flooding. Some of these are being used to blame India for the flooding. It is important to verify sources of information and images before sharing.

Many in Bangladesh believe Indian officials deliberately released water from the Dumbar Reservoir without notice.

India says they didn’t open the dam deliberately but said safety measures that release water automatically kicked in because of the amount of rain. A power outage led to a communications failure and no warning for Bangladesh residents. This was the first time since 1993 that rainfall created river levels high enough to trigger the opening of the switch gate.

In a statement, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said, “Floods on the common rivers between India and Bangladesh are a shared problem inflicting sufferings to people on both sides, and requires close mutual cooperation towards resolving them. As two countries sharing 54 common cross-border rivers, river water cooperation is an important part of our bilateral engagement. We remain committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions.”

Flooding is a recurrent problem that affects millions of people in both countries annually. It is a mix of “geographical, hydrological and meteorological factors, combined with human activities and infrastructure development,” including 30 dams built by India on the numerous cross-border rivers. Chief Advisor of the interim government, Muhammad Yunus, suggested that the two countries create a high-level committee to manage flooding.

India and Bangladesh depend on the seasonal rains for farming and filling their reservoirs and aquifers. In most years, monsoons bring about 70% of the rain India needs for these tasks.

The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research says that while not enough rain can affect the ability of crops to grow, too much rain can also harm plants.

NGO BRAC USA said that almost one million acres of land have flooded Bangladesh. They report an economic impact of almost $170 million USD (BDT 20 billion). 

Flooding could heighten the threat of disease outbreaks. Backflow from drains mixed with floodwaters can become trapped in open areas when inundations recede. These stagnant pools often become a breeding ground for mosquitoes and bacteria, increasing the incidence of insect- and water-borne diseases. Exposure to contaminated water from inundated industrial sites, sewer systems and septic tanks also poses a significant health threat.